The Netherlands, Belgium, France and Luxembourg are joining forces to make packaging more sustainable. Verpact, together with Fost Plus, Valipac, Citeo, Citeo PRO and Valorlux, have signed a cooperation agreement that will help companies transition to more environmentally friendly packaging. Thanks to better coordination between countries, packaging will be processed correctly, tracked transparently and designed sustainably. Consumers will also benefit: they will have more certainty about the sustainability of products in stores.

 For companies operating in multiple countries, it was often a challenge to comply with different rules and reporting requirements. The collaboration makes this easier and more efficient, while also contributing to a fairer and more environmentally friendly system.

 The collaboration focuses on three key pillars. Firstly, packaging declarations will be harmonised, making data more comparable and increasing transparency for consumers. Secondly, the organisations will pool their expertise to make packaging more circular, with a focus on recyclability, the use of recycled materials, reusable packaging and less packaging waste. Finally, the traceability of commercial packaging will be strengthened, so that it is clear where packaging ends up and how it is recycled.

The collaboration is directly in line with the new European Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) and should result in a simpler system for businesses and more sustainable packaging for consumers. In this way, the European objectives are being translated into concrete practice.