On April 10, 2018, media platform Euractiv hosted a workshop on the topic “Safe and circular: Making food contact material work for consumers and the environment“ in Brussels, Belgium (FPF reported).
Jean-Pierre Schweitzer of the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) called for “a more holistic, systemic approach to packaging in general,” taking into account different aspects such as “health, the environment, and socio-economic considerations.” The IEEP together with Friends of the Earth Europe, Zero Waste Europe, and the Rethink Plastic Alliance, released a report on April 10, 2018 illustrating that plastic packaging does not effectively reduce food waste (FPF reported).
Jane Muncke of the Food Packaging Forum highlighted the difference between permanent and non-permanent materials. The former can be recycled “endlessly” and contain “less chemicals that transfer from the packaging into the food.” The latter “degrade and lose their material properties during mechanical recycling,” and are “more prone to transferring chemicals from the packaging into the food.”
Jean-Paul Judson of the European Container Glass Federation (FEVE) stated that “protecting the consumers and the environment has to go hand in hand.” The glass packaging industry has a “reference packaging,” Judson claimed, and wants to “work with policy makers.”
Read more
Evan Lamos and Michael Ball (April 11, 2018). “Safe and circular: Making food contact material work for consumers and the environment.” Euractiv
Sam Morgan (April12, 2018). “Plastic packaging fails to reduce food waste, study warns.” Euractiv
