A new study, following an update to the EU's regulation on packaging and packaged waste, claims that greenhouse gas emissions can be cut by more than half if food service operators implement a policy requiring only reusable items on their premises.
Aarhus, Denmark, and Berlin, Germany, were able to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 54 % and 34 %, respectively, when the reuse policy was implemented.
Larissa Copello, Head of Packaging and Reuse Policy at Zero Waste Europe (a packaging reuse organisation): “No one can deny that we need to reuse takeaway packaging in order to tackle our waste crisis.”
It’s not enough without a strong framework and serious size. The market is still dominated by single-use plastic, but reuse has caught up. “It’s time for policy interventions to help unlock the potential of reuse.”
This report is evidence-based. Chemicals in contact with food, some of which are harmful to human health, can be present in the bloodstream.At higher levels than expected
Supermarkets are ditching reusable food shelves
Zero Waste Europe's report, Facilitating Takeaway Reuse Systems: A Report on Environmental and Economic Impact of Reusable Packaging, focuses primarily on the impact of reusable containers.
The report examined six single-use takeaway packaging and reusable packaging formats based on two city case studies, and acknowledged the differences.
The cost of single-use packaging may be higher for larger companies due to economies of scale.
This report responds to the growing interest of consumers for refillable packaging. Carrefour has set up refill stations in its Belgian and French stores for dry products such as cereals and pasta.
In the UK, however, some brands including German discounter Lidl and Asda have removed their in-store refillable trial sections, citing costs and a "lack of consumer appetite".
Zero Waste Europe suggests that governments introduce a number of taxes or levies to encourage fair competition and maintain customer engagement in the restaurant sector.
Ban all single-use plastics
Local governments should encourage incremental change through targets, and perhaps even countdowns to a total ban.
Fernando Rodriguez-Mata, Managing Director of the New European Reuse Alliance, said: “As innovators for a future where reusable packaging is commonplace, we must create a level playing field for single-use alternatives.”
We need to create policies and conditions that will encourage the transition from poorly designed reuse systems to well-designed reuse systems, in order to unlock their environmental and economic benefits.
Louise Lerche Gredal, director of Plastic Change, says single-use plastic needs to be eradicated from society and consumers and business owners need to be convinced to no longer see it as a convenience.
She says that "the massive consumption of polymers has caused plastic pollution, which affects our biodiversity, our climate and our health."
The only way to minimize the negative effects of plastic is to reduce demand. We can reduce our impact on the environment by reducing the use of single-use products and increasing the rate of reuse.
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