Watch the webinar replay here, or scroll down for a summary and a preview.
Evolving packaging regulations and stewardship schemes are critical to tackling plastic waste and moving towards a circular economy. To stay ahead of regulatory changes, businesses must adapt their packaging strategies and work together to improve sustainability outcomes.
In this webinar, Lyn Mayes, coordinator of the Plastic Packaging Product Stewardship (PPPS) scheme and director of Mad World, and Helen Lewis, expert in packaging sustainability at thinkstep-anz are discussing regulatory developments in the European Union, Australia and New Zealand and what could mean for your business.
Helen’s key points
EU Regulations:
- The EU is transitioning from the current Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive to a regulation to standardise packaging requirements across member states, making implementation more uniform, immediate and effective.
- New regulations aim to prevent packaging waste, promote reuse, ensure all packaging is recyclable by 2030, and increase the use of recycled materials.
- Targets include a 70% recycling rate by 2030, specific material-based targets, and stringent design for recyclability standards.
Australian framework:
- Australia employs a co-regulatory framework with the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) and the National Environment Protection (Used Packaging) Measure.
- Voluntary targets are currently in place for reducing single-use plastics and increasing post-consumer recycled content.
- The country is moving towards mandatory design requirements, including for recyclability and recycled content.
Business implications:
- Companies must adapt to increasing restrictions on single-use plastics and stricter targets for recyclability and recycled content.
- Introducing more stringent Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws will shift the cost of managing packaging waste from ratepayers to producers.
Lyn’s key points
New Zealand's Plastic Packaging Product Stewardship scheme:
- New Zealand is developing a mandatory product stewardship scheme for plastic packaging.
- The design of the scheme builds on a comprehensive analysis of plastic flows in the market.
- The scheme focuses on consumer and non-grocery plastics, aiming to increase the current low recycling rate (around 17%).
- Challenges include limited data on plastic use, the need for significant infrastructure investments for onshore processing, and the limited scope of the scheme (plastic packaging only) compared to those in other countries.
Scheme design and stakeholder engagement:
- The scheme's design process includes extensive stakeholder engagement and benchmarking against international schemes.
- New Zealand's small market presents unique challenges, but there are opportunities for alignment with Australian regulations to achieve economies of scale.
- Companies are encouraged to attend one of the briefing sessions in late July.
Implementation and responsibilities:
- The producer (defined as the brand owner or importer) will be responsible for the net costs associated with the collecting, sorting, and reprocessing of plastic packaging.
- The scheme aims to reduce waste, improve packaging design, and integrate cultural frameworks like Te Ao Māori into waste management strategies.
Challenges and opportunities
- Data gaps: Both Australia and New Zealand face challenges due to insufficient data on plastic packaging flows, which complicates designing and implementing effective stewardship schemes.
- Infrastructure needs: Significant investment in recycling infrastructure is required to meet ambitious targets, particularly for onshore processing capabilities.
- Regulatory alignment: Australia and New Zealand could work together to harmonise regulations and leverage economies of scale, benefiting both markets.
More information on international packaging stewardship schemes is available in this White Paper from the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence, co-authored by Helen.
Questions and Answers
Helen and Lyn didn’t get around answering all participants’ questions during the webinar.
Here are the answers to the remaining questions:
Q: Will the EU regulation for compostable packaging require certification?
Helen: Annexe III of the Regulation sets out the conditions that need to be considered in mandating compostable packaging including. “it is of biodegradable nature allowing the packaging to undergo physical, chemical, thermal or biological decomposition, including anaerobic digestion, resulting ultimately in conversion into carbon dioxide or methane, in the absence of oxygen, mineral salts, biomass and water”. The Regulation refers to technical requirements being outlined in standards.
Q: How will these mandates work for medical devices and highly regulated plastic containers that have limitations for use of recycled content and contamination preventing recyclers from accepting them?
Helen: The Regulation gives the Commission authority to pass delegated Acts to exempt certain packaging types from the requirements.
Q: Lyn, are there % limits with fibre and plastic by weight outlined in the requirements?
Lyn: This is a difficult question which is still being considered. In the draft scheme design recommendations, it is proposed that this is aligned with the Australian Recycling Label (ARL) thresholds for fibre. However, these have not yet been agreed for NZ with paper recyclers wanting a much higher threshold (98% or higher).
Q: I work as a TechnoEconomic Analyst at Scion. We are working a LOT in developing new materials and packaging technologies. From the economic perspective, a bottleneck for a wider adoption is the COST. Companies and consumers SAY they are willing to pay a premium if the packaging is more environmentally friendly, but the reality is that they are RELUCTANT to pay more. What’s your perspective on this?
Helen: This is a challenge facing innovative materials and technologies. Eco-modulation of EPR fees to incentivise sustainable packaging formats and disincentivise others (e.g. non-recyclable, 100% virgin) may be part of the answer.
Q: Very much agree with the need to consider how best to optimise recycling capability across ANZ (and further) to give economies of scale to make it commercially viable. Do you have any thoughts on how Australia and NZ could begin to approach that now?
Lyn: We are considering this. The EU is implementing requirements for the whole region rather than one country.
Q: Lyn, will the packaging producer or the brand owner be responsible for the collecting of the packaging for recycling?
Lyn: the brand owner will be responsible – that is the producer that places the plastic on the market. The draft scheme design recommendation is that a producer is “a brand or importer of products in plastic packaging that are placed on the market in New Zealand via a retailer or wholesaler or offshore based marketplace for sale to a consumer or a business”. Note that this is not the same as the definition of a producer in the Waste Minimisation Act.
Q: Is there any guidance or recommendation on nature-based solutions to substitute some plastics?
Helen: Renewable bio-based plastics will be part of the solution. The European Commission has published a policy that may be useful - Biobased, biodegradable and compostable plastics - European Commission (europa.eu)