The European Council on Monday formally adopted the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, in what’s described as the final legislative step to a years-long process.

It’s expected to be signed on Dec. 19, and publication in the Official Journal of the European Union usually occurs around 20 days after signature. The regulation will be applied 18 months after officially published.

The regulation contains topline targets to reduce packaging waste from a 2018 baseline by 5% by 2030, 10% by 2035 and 15% by 2040.

Other tenets of the regulation, which aims to address the full lifecycle of packaging, include:

• Restrictions on single-use plastic packaging for certain food, beverages and condiments consumed on-site; pre-packed produce; small personal care products at hotels; and “very lightweight” plastic bags
• 2030 and 2040 targets for minimum recycled content, lightweighting packaging and minimizing substances of concern like PFAS, including requiring 65% postconsumer plastic in most plastic packaging come 2040
• Binding reuse targets for 2030 (with different thresholds for different types of packaging) and a requirement that takeout establishments allow customers to bring their own containers for filling at no additional charge

There are several deadlines within the legal text for the Commission to adopt secondary legislation.

Europen, a group representing the packaging industry value chain in Europe, noted in a post to LinkedIn on Monday that now it’s watching how “timely development of secondary legislation and the implementation of follow-up actions required” under PPWR will play out. “These steps are crucial to addressing the PPWR’s broad scope and complexity while providing the industry with the necessary framework to prepare for compliance,” the group said.

UNESDA, which represents the European soft drinks industry, shared similar sentiments in its own LinkedIn post: “[T]he European Commission now needs to invest energy and resources in the next, even more crucial phase: developing the necessary implementation measures that enable the industry to prepare for compliance. To succeed, the industry needs sufficient preparation time and clear rules.”

The Roundtable for Reusable Containers Trays and Pallets, a group focused on encouraging the use of reusable, returnable and recyclable plastic packaging in the EU, celebrated the latest development.

“We are thrilled to see the PPWR is now over the line. The PPWR is a key milestone for ‘reuse’ as it sets clear goals to reduce waste and promote sustainable packaging,” said Britta Wyss Bisang, chair of the RCTP Business Group, in a statement. 

Packaging companies are already mentioning the regulation in marketing to customers. For instance, in a news release Monday introducing its PaperSeal Shape paperboard tray to the Spanish retail market, Graphic Packaging touted that the tray replaces a traditional plastic option and contains less than 10% plastic, which it advertises as “compliant with the European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.”

This has been a multi-year process between the EU’s governing bodies. The European Commission proposes new regulations like PPWR and the Parliament and Council adopt them. Member states then implement them and the Commission in turn ensures they’re carried out properly.