Packaging – GS1 in Europe

The future of packaging: navigating European regulations with GS1

Packaging plays a critical role in our daily lives, from protecting products during transport to providing essential consumer information. However, its environmental impact, particularly concerning waste and resource consumption, has come under increasing scrutiny. This has led to a significant push for more sustainable packaging practices, particularly at the European level.

Why packaging is a crucial topic at the European level

The European Union (EU) is at the forefront of driving change in packaging sustainability. Facing a growing challenge of packaging waste – with each European generating nearly 190kg of packaging waste annually – the EU Commission has set ambitious targets and introduced landmark legislation to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

Key drivers and legislation

EU Commission targets: the EU aims for a significant reduction in packaging waste per capita, with targets of 5% by 2030, 10% by 2035, and 15% by 2040, based on 2018 levels. A crucial objective is also to ensure that all packaging placed on the EU market is fully recyclable by 2030.
The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR): this upcoming legislation is a cornerstone of the EU’s Green Deal. Unlike previous directives, the PPWR is a directly applicable regulation, meaning its rules are legally binding across all EU member states without needing national implementation. It introduces a comprehensive framework with stringent requirements, including:
- Design for recyclability
- Minimum recycled content
- Packaging minimisation
- Reuse and refill targets
- Ban on certain single-use plastics
- Restrictions on hazardous substances
- Standardised labelling: clear and harmonised labels, potentially including QR codes, will be required to provide information on material composition, sorting instructions, and reuse.

The PPWR will bring about significant changes for manufacturers, importers, and distributors, requiring strategic and operational adjustments across the entire supply chain.

Why Packaging is an important topic for GS1 and companies

For companies, navigating the evolving landscape of packaging regulations presents both challenges and opportunities. Compliance is essential to avoid penalties and maintain market access, but adopting sustainable practices can also lead to cost savings, enhanced brand reputation, and new business models.

GS1 plays a vital role in enabling efficient and transparent supply chains globally. Its standards provide a common language for identifying, capturing, and sharing information about products, locations, and assets. For packaging, this means:

Unique identification: GS1 Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs), often found in barcodes and QR codes, uniquely identify products and their packaging variants, allowing for precise tracking.
Standardised data exchange: GS1 standards define how to describe product and packaging attributes, ensuring consistent and accurate data exchange between all parties in the supply chain – from manufacturers to retailers and waste management facilities.
Enhanced traceability: by providing a framework for capturing key events in a product’s lifecycle, GS1 standards facilitate end-to-end traceability, which is crucial for verifying recycled content, demonstrating recyclability, and managing recalls effectively.

How GS1 Standards can help comply with the PPWR

GS1 standards offer practical tools and frameworks that are instrumental in helping companies comply with the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). At GS1, we work in close collaboration with industry stakeholders, including manufacturers, retailers, logistics providers, and recyclers, to interpret and adapt standards, develop best practices, provide guidance and tools and advocate for harmonisation.

!! DOWNLOAD SOON !! You will find below a first document developed by GS1 in Europe in partnership with its Member Organisations, entitled Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation and GS1 Standards. It gives indications on how companies can leverage GS1 standards to proactively address the challenges posed by the PPWR, streamline their operations, and contribute to a more sustainable and circular economy for packaging in Europe and beyond.

!! DOWNLOAD NOW!! The second document proposed below is entitled Packaging – Overview of data attributes to answer PPWR requirements. It offers an overview of technology-agnostic data attributes and code lists to support companies on their way to compliance and efficiency according to the PPWR.

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Related Publications

Packaging – Overview of data attributes to answer PPWR requirements