Celebrating its 25th anniversary today, EUROPEN gathered high-level EU policy-makers, industry leaders and stakeholders to discuss the key role of packaging innovation for a circular economy in our evolving societies.
Senior Executives from EUROPEN members, including Borealis, Crown Europe, Danone Waters, Nestlé Waters and Tetra Pak reaffirmed the packaging supply chain’s commitment to packaging innovation for a circular economy, and emphasised the need for a clear enabling policy framework. Panellists stressed the importance of maintaining the integrity of the Single Market to give businesses the security to invest in tomorrow’s packaging solutions. They also shared the view that collaboration among the packaging value chain is the only way to embed the upcoming changes in society.
In his keynote speech, Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans said, “Over the last three years we have laid the groundwork for Europe to move towards a more Circular Economy. With major legislative reforms now completed on waste management, and new proposals on the way very soon to tackle the scourge of single-use plastics, the time has come to put our policies into practice. The European Commission counts on the continued commitment of industry to transform, invest and innovate. This will give European companies a competitive edge, making them global leaders in a rapidly-developing field. We strongly believe that sustainable innovation will bring out the best in our industries and deliver the best standards of living for our citizens."
EUROPEN fully shares this vision. EUROPEN members have recently made ambitious commitments to continuously improve the environmental performance of their packaging and packaged products, which will make a sizeable contribution to the EU’s new packaging waste targets for 2025/2030 and path towards an EU Plastics Economy.
Hans van Bochove, EUROPEN Chairman (Coca-Cola European Partners) said, “This year EUROPEN celebrates its 25th anniversary. In the last quarter century, and particularly around the recent development of EU circular economy ambitions, EUROPEN has offered constructive and progressive input to the work of the EU institutions. Today, EUROPEN’s purpose is more relevant than ever. We are committed to seek joint solutions throughout the packaging supply chain for the many challenges ahead, to ensure that the Circular Economy Package and its Action Plan deliver tangible, sustainable and competitive benefits for the European environment, economy and society.”
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