New EU-wide rules on packaging and packaging waste take effect from 12 August 2026, tightening requirements on how products are packed and how packaging is dealt with after use.
The measures apply to all packaging placed on the EU market and set conditions for how packaging is made and what it contains, the European Commission said in a statement on Wednesday.
Packaging must be reusable or “recoverable”, meaning it can be used again or processed into new materials after use, it added.
From 2030, certain types of single-use packaging will be banned where “more sustainable alternatives are available”, with examples including small ketchup sachets and mini shampoo bottles in hotels.
The Commission said the rules will require plastic packaging to include recycled content, with targets that increase in 2030 and 2040. All packaging must be recyclable by 2030.
Labels and colour systems are also set to be standardised to help people sort waste for recycling, including information on what packaging is made of, where to dispose of it, and how to return it for reuse.
Reuse, deposit returns and chemical limits
Companies will be required to make reuse or refill options available “whenever possible” and without extra charge, while deposit and return systems will be expanded, according to the Commission’s statement.
The rules also include “extended producer responsibility”, meaning brands using non-recyclable or environmentally harmful materials will have to pay the costs of cleaning them up.
Restrictions will apply to PFAS in food packaging — a group of long-lasting chemicals sometimes called “forever chemicals” — including limits covering substances described as harmful and cancer-causing in the Commission statement.
