A new report by the Rethink Plastic Alliance, European Environmental Bureau, Zero Waste Europe, Fern and the Environmental Paper Network reveals the environmental harm caused by replacing single-use plastic with single-use paper packaging. The report clearly shows the need to move away from ever-polluting single-use packaging and towards well-designed reuse systems. The NGO coalition calls on the EU to seize the opportunity the Packaging and Packaging Waste regulation offers, and implement the necessary changes.

This briefing focuses on non-governmental organisations’ (NGOs) position on the recent devastating increase in paper packaging. For the wider NGO position on EU packaging rules please see the position paper developed by the Rethink Plastic alliance.