According to a proposal by the EU Commission, coffee capsules made of metal and plastic are to be banned in future. Instead, disposable packaging would have to be made from bio-based materials and be compostable. The European Bioplastics Association welcomes the draft.
„We regret that only a limited number of packaging types are currently being proposed that must be compostable, but we support the inclusion of coffee capsules in the list of products that may only be placed on the EU market in future, if they are certified as compostable,“ says Hasso von Pogrell, Managing Director of EUBP.
Coffee accounts for around 80 per cent of the weight of a coffee capsule. The collection of the main component of the capsules through organic recycling ensures the greatest possible value retention of the used application, which is in line with the principles of the circular economy. Compost containing coffee grounds has several advantages for improving the soil. With any other end-of-life option, the valuable organic material is lost.
The Commission's impact assessment concludes that compostable coffee capsules are a favoured option from a life cycle assessment perspective. Compostable coffee capsules can significantly increase the collection of organic waste, reduce the contamination of the compost with non-compostable plastics and do not lead to increased contamination of other waste streams.
„We therefore firmly believe that biological recycling is the most environmentally friendly option for the disposal of coffee capsules, and Call on Parliament and the Council to keep coffee capsules on the proposed positive list for mandatory compostable packaging, as set out in the Commission's proposal for revised packaging legislation (PPWR),“ concludes von Pogrell.
Source: European Bioplastics
