EU bans plastic ketchup and sugar sachets

The move is part of the European Union’s fight against harmful plastics

In its continuing battle to rid the planet of harmful plastics, the EU has announced that by 2030, all single-use sachets will disappear from supermarkets, hotels and restaurants, a measure that will reduce plastic packaging by 5%.

This will include the usual plastic packets of condiments found on tables across Spain like ketchup, vinegar, mayonnaise, mustard and sugar.

Sadly, our over-dependence on plastic has led to actual islands of rubbish forming in the ocean, the largest of which currently holds 1.6 million square kilometres of garbage – that’s three times the size of France. And that’s not the only one that exists, either: according to the Aquae Foundation, there are four other waste islands spread throughout the oceans around the world.

Given that each European citizen generated almost 190 kilos of packaging and wrapping waste in 2021, it is evident that this European law is more than urgent. It seeks to make containers and packaging more sustainable and reduce waste, also encouraging recycling and reusable containers.

What products will the new EU law prohibit?

As well as your table-top sachets, the rule will also ban personal hygiene products such as mini shampoo bottles in hotels. It will also outlaw food containers containing so-called “forever chemicals” (perfluoroalkylated and polyfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS), among others).

These PFAS chemicals don’t occur in nature but once there, they never leave, as the substances hardly break down at all regardless of how long they’ve been in the environment. Over the years, traces have been found in the blood and breast milk of people and animals across the globe.

At the same time manufacturers of plastic, single-use ketchup and mayo sachets will have to find alternative packaging, the EU will begin pushing reusable containers. According to a statement, “final distributors of takeaway drinks and food will have to offer consumers the option of providing their own container at no additional cost.”

In other news: RAF pilot accused of raping British tourist in Spain

Image: Spanish News Today

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