Climate Politics
Camembert to Sugar Sachets: EU’s Packaging Rules Get Messy
- Parliament agrees position on curbing paper, plastic waste
- Law has been intensively lobbied by restaurant industry
EU parliamentarians agreed to exempt single-use packaging in the restaurant sector from an outright ban.
Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/Bloomberg
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The European Union’s plans to overhaul the way consumers use packaging from mini shampoo bottles to the wooden box surrounding Camembert cheese survived a chaotic vote as the bloc seeks to make waste management and recycling a key part of its climate goals.
EU parliamentarians agreed on Wednesday to exempt small single-use packaging in the restaurant sector such as sugar sachets and mayonnaise tubes from an outright ban. But their position also means that Europeans may have to forgo the free toiletries they get at hotels.