The Central Association of the German Baking Trade has called on the German Association of Cities and Municipalities in an open letter to refrain from introducing municipal packaging taxes or to suspend existing regulations. According to the association, the reason for this is the results of a survey by the Freiburg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, ..., which are intended to highlight the economic and organisational burdens for bakeries.
According to the Central Association, many businesses see municipal packaging taxes as an additional cost and bureaucratic factor. The criticism is based on a survey of 107 companies, which according to the association particularly affects the to-go business. According to them, around two-thirds of companies are reporting a decline in sales of coffee, hot drinks, and warm meals to go. Just under half are also seeing lower sales of other single-use takeaway items packaged in disposable containers. In some cases, businesses have reported revenue losses of more than 60 percent.
Criticism of bureaucracy and the extra effort required for reusable systems
In addition to economic consequences, the association points to additional organisational effort. According to the letter, more than 80 percent of the businesses surveyed cite increased administrative effort. Around 71 percent complained of low customer acceptance of the regulations. Furthermore, there were investments in till systems, staff training, and reusable and washing systems. More than half of the businesses also reported conflicts with customers.
According to the central association, the intended ecological steering effect has also remained limited so far. Around 78 percent of the surveyed businesses indicated that customers still preferred single-use packaging. The tax therefore mainly leads to additional burdens for businesses and consumers, the letter states.
Association calls for renunciation of municipal packaging taxes
The central association is appealing to the German Association of Cities and Municipalities and to the municipalities to refrain from further packaging taxes, given the economic situation of the trades. In the association's opinion, municipal packaging taxes that have already been introduced should be suspended. As justification, it refers, among other things, to the importance of the baking trade for local supply, employment, and city centres.
Source: Central Association of German Bakers
