By Nicholas Hodac, Director General of UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe
Over the past couple of months, I have seen a promising shift in the EU’s political priorities. There is growing recognition that competitiveness and environmental sustainability go hand in hand, as reflected in key recent initiatives from the European Commission, like the EU Clean Industrial Deal.
That said, the major challenge for businesses is not necessarily the ambitious sustainability goals to accelerate Europe’s green transition. The real hurdle for businesses is the complex regulatory landscape they must navigate to reach those objectives and the significant costs of complying with legislation. I obviously recognise that this sustainability transition is needed and that every transition comes with a cost. The problem I see is that we are not providing industry with the right tools and enablers (whether financial or legislative) to implement this transition. It is therefore encouraging to see the European Commission placing a strong focus on regulatory simplification to stimulate economic growth and support legislative compliance.
Ahead of this week’s Environment Council on the EU Clean Industrial Deal, I wish to share a few considerations on how the bottlenecks and inconsistencies in EU environmental legislation can be addressed to support circularity in Europe.
Want to support businesses’ compliance process? Provide the timely secondary legislation they need and make sure they are of high quality (= clear and well-drafted)
Legal clarity is key for businesses to plan ahead, adjust their operations, and meet regulatory requirements. To help them prepare for compliance, it is essential to provide businesses with the necessary and timely pieces of secondary legislation and guidelines.
Here are just a couple of examples to show why timely secondary legislation is so important to ensure a smoother implementation of the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD) and the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR):
- The first recycled content targets under the SUPD (Article 6) have 2025 as a deadline but, as surprising as it may sound, the implementing act defining how to calculate this recycled content is still under review.
- When it comes to the implementation of the PPWR, there are a number of clarifications expected to be answered in the relevant secondary legislation and guidelines, including the calculation method for the reuse and recycled content targets, and the clarification on the scope of the exemption of the ban on single-use plastic grouped packaging (Article 25). It should indeed already have been clarified that plastic wraps helping both retailers (B2B) and consumers (B2C) handle packs of beverage bottles or cans could continue to be used but we are currently operating under complete legal uncertainty.
The European Commission’s efforts to make legislation ‘’simpler, faster and lighter’’ have the potential to be a real win. By streamlining (environmental) rules, the EU can boost its competitive edge and make circularity work.
The upcoming EU Circular Economy Act, expected in 2026, offers another crucial opportunity to further support industry’s circularity efforts. It can help foster a stable market for secondary recycled materials to ensure sufficient recycled PET is available at a competitive price.
Our sector is ready to keep working with policymakers to create a simpler and more practical regulatory framework that helps businesses thrive and drive circularity.
Stay tuned, my next reflections will be focused on supporting innovation in nutrition and health.
