EU: MEPs vote positive on reducing plastic carrier bags

EU countries will be required to reduce the use of the commonest and most polluting plastic bags drastically under new rules voted by Parliament on 28 April. EU member states will be able to choose either to take measures to reduce annual average consumption of plastic bags to 90 lightweight bags per citizen by the end of 2019 and 40 by the end of 2025 or ensure that by the end of 2018, no more light plastic bags are handed over free of charge to shoppers. The European Commission is also required to assess the impact on the environment of oxo-degradable plastic materials, which fragment into small particles, and propose suitable measures (Press Release European Parliament, 28 April 2015).
Click here for the press release.
Click here for the directive published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Click here for a European Parliament video about plastic bag use and the environment.
With NVC MERGE (Members-only Environmental Regulations Guide) you can stay up-to-date with the environmental requirements for your packaging. MERGE is exclusively for NVC members and there are no costs involved.
Click here for more information about the NVC E-Workshop Sustainable Innovation in Packaging.

If you have any questions about this subject, please contact us: info@nvc.nl, +31-(0)182-512411. This item is also included in our monthly overview, the NVC Members-only Update.