Reduction of plastic packaging in France

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SNCF (French railway) has announced it will no longer sell water in plastic bottles on its services! The move should reduce the waste of about two million drinks.

Recyclable cardboard for still water and aluminium for sparkling will replace the plastic packaging. The head of consumer travel operations at the SNCF, Alain Krakovitch, wrote on Twitter “Plastic is no longer fantastic,”

France is gradually increasing restrictions on single-use plastic packaging to help reduce waste amid growing evidence about the impact of plastic on sea life in particular. Last Monday, the government announced the ban of the use of plastic packaging for the majority of fruits and vegetables as from January 2022.

According to the environment ministry, 37 percent of fruits and vegetables are sold with plastic packaging, and only the most fragile produce such as strawberries will be given an exemption from the ban until 2026.“We use an outrageous amount of single-use plastic in our daily lives,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that he aims to cut back “the use of throwaway plastic and boost its substitution by other materials or reusable and recyclable packaging.”
These measures apply to products sold in batches of less than 1.5kg. After a six-month grace period, distributors who fail to comply will face fines of up to €15,000 and daily penalties of €1,500. Sellers, however, claim that food packaging represents a small percentage of plastic packaging in France, and say the switch could be difficult as cardboard is not as sturdy.
As part of a wide-ranging “circular economy” law passed last year in France, the destruction of unsold clothes is forbidden and plastic straws, cups and cutlery, as well as Styrofoam takeaway boxes are banned.
The ban is part of a rolling programme to cut plastic waste in France. As of next year, public facilities must provide water fountains to reduce the use of plastic water bottles, fast food restaurants can no longer offer free plastic toys, and an alternative to plastic wrapping must be used to ship publications.
Paris city authorities announced this week that they were aiming to eliminate all plastic from state day-care centres, canteens and retirement homes by 2026.

 


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