PPWR – Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation

PPWR (Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation) is the Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) 2025/40, which introduces binding and uniform rules for the management of packaging and packaging waste across the entire European Union.

It replaces the existing Directive 94/62/EC and, unlike that directive, applies directly – without the need to transpose it into the national legislation of each member state.

Why was PPWR created?

Packaging waste has long been one of the largest components of municipal waste in the EU. At the same time, there was significant inconsistency between member states in the rules governing packaging — what was permitted in one country was prohibited in another. PPWR removes this inconsistency and establishes minimum requirements that apply to everyone.

The regulation has three objectives:

1. to reduce the overall quantity of packaging waste,
2. to increase the proportion of recyclable and reusable packaging,
3. to prevent unnecessary over-packaging.

The third objective is the most concrete and the most immediately impactful obligation for the majority of businesses.

Who does PPWR apply to?

The regulation applies across the entire value chain — that is, to all entities that manufacture, fill, place on the market, or distribute packaging. Specifically, this includes:

• manufacturers of packaging and packaging materials,
• manufacturers and importers of goods sold in packaging,
• e-commerce operators and parcel delivery services,
• wholesale distributors and logistics ccompanies,
• retail sellers.

Key deadlines and obligations

PPWR entered into force on 11 February 2025, and its provisions are being phased in progressively. The most important dates are as follows:

You can find an overview of the deadlines up to 2040 in our PPWR calendar.

A selection of the most important obligations introduced by PPWR:

• Minimisation of empty space — in sales packaging reduced to the absolute minimum; in transport and e-commerce packaging a maximum of 50% of the total volume (void fill materials count as empty space).
• Recyclability – from 2030, all packaging must be recyclable.
• Restriction of excessive packaging – prohibition of unnecessary packaging layers with no functional purpose.
• Labelling – mandatory harmonised pictograms for waste sorting.
• Reuse targets – in the beverage, transport, and e-commerce sectors.

How does PPWR differ from the previous directive?

The existing Directive 94/62/EC established only broad recycling targets and general requirements for packaging. Each member state then implemented it in its own way, leading to a fragmentation of rules.

PPWR is a directly binding regulation. It therefore requires no national implementation and applies immediately and uniformly across all European Union member states.

Furthermore, it goes significantly further: it does not merely set waste targets, but directly regulates the design of packaging, its dimensions, and the materials used. For businesses, this means considerably more concrete and enforceable obligations.

What does this mean for your business?

If you manufacture, package, or distribute goods in the EU, PPWR applies to you. The nearest practical obligation — the restriction on empty space in packaging — takes effect in February 2028. This may appear to leave ample time, but adapting a packaging process, designing new packaging, and selecting appropriate packaging materials takes longer in practice than it might seem.

How the empty space rule works in concrete terms and what it involves in practice is covered in detail in our article Empty Boxes, Real Problems: What PPWR Says About Wasted Space in Packaging.