From 12 August 2026, the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will generally apply, introducing new requirements across the packaging lifecycle.
For logistics businesses and UK companies supplying the EU, packaging can no longer be treated simply as something that protects a product in transit. The regulation covers all packaging placed on the EU market, regardless of its material or origin, including transport and e-commerce packaging.
The PPWR aims to reduce packaging waste, improve recyclability and accelerate the transition towards a circular economy. According to the European Commission, packaging accounts for 40% of plastics used in the EU and generated an average of 186.5kg of waste per person in 2022. European Commission overview
What is changing?
The PPWR introduces requirements covering packaging design, composition, labelling, recyclability, reuse and waste management.
Its long-term ambitions include:
- Making all packaging placed on the EU market recyclable in an economically viable way by 2030
- Increasing the use of recycled plastic
- Reducing unnecessary packaging and the use of virgin materials
- Restricting certain single-use packaging
- Moving the packaging sector towards climate neutrality by 2050
The regulation entered into force in February 2025, but most provisions apply from 12 August 2026. Other requirements will be introduced in stages, so compliance should be treated as an ongoing process rather than a single deadline. EUR-Lex summary
Why does this matter to logistics businesses?
Packaging decisions are made throughout the supply chain—not only by manufacturers.
Freight forwarders, fulfilment providers, warehouses and other logistics businesses may add, replace or remove materials when consolidating, storing and preparing goods for road, air or sea transport. This could include boxes, pallets, wrapping, straps and protective materials.
Businesses will therefore need to understand:
- What packaging they introduce or alter
- Which materials and quantities they use
- Whether that packaging meets the relevant requirements
- What information must be retained or shared with customers and supply-chain partners
- Who holds each legal responsibility within the transaction
Pallet wrapping and straps have been exempted from the PPWR’s 100% reuse targets for transport packaging, but that exemption should not be interpreted as removing them from every other applicable packaging requirement. The Commission is also developing further rules on labelling, recycled content and sustainability criteria. European Commission implementation timeline
What about UK businesses?
Although the UK is outside the EU, the PPWR is relevant where packaging is placed on the EU market. UK exporters should establish which organisations in their supply chains are acting as the manufacturer, importer, distributor or producer for the purposes of the regulation.
Businesses should not assume that their logistics provider will carry every obligation—or that responsibility ends when goods leave the UK. Contracts, packaging specifications and information-sharing arrangements may all need review.
What should businesses do now?
A sensible starting point is to:
- Map the packaging used across EU-bound shipments, including materials added during repacking or consolidation.
- Identify the organisations responsible at each stage of the supply chain.
- Request compliance information from packaging suppliers.
- Review agreements with customers, carriers, warehouses and fulfilment partners.
- Create reliable records for packaging composition, quantities and movements.
- Follow the Commission’s implementation guidance as further technical rules are finalised.
The PPWR will create new compliance demands, but it also offers businesses an opportunity to reduce waste, improve supply-chain visibility and reconsider how products are packed and transported.
The key date is approaching. Businesses trading with the EU should start asking now: do we know what packaging enters our supply chain, who is responsible for it and whether it will meet the new rules?
This article provides general information and does not constitute legal advice.
https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/packaging-waste_en
https://green-forum.ec.europa.eu/packaging-and-packaging-waste-regulation-implementation_en