The PPWR and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation
What is the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR)?
The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) entered into force on 18 July 2024. In the words of the European Commission, the ESPR is “the cornerstone of the Commission’s approach to more environmentally sustainable and circular products”. It sets out a framework for the establishment of ecodesign requirements (both information and performance requirements).
Under the ESPR, delegated acts will impose requirements related to specific priority product groups regarding, for instance, product durability, reusability or reparability. Products will need to be accompanied by a Digital Product Passport (DPP), a digital identity card for products, components, and materials, which will store relevant information to support products’ sustainability, promote their circularity and strengthen legal compliance.
How could the ESPR overlap or interact with the PPWR?
The ESPR applies to any physical goods that are placed on the market or put into service. In principle, this also includes packaging.
As set out under its recital (9), the PPWR complements the ESPR, under which packaging is not addressed as a specific product category. However, according to the same recital, “it is possible for delegated acts adopted on the basis of [the ESPR] to establish additional or more detailed requirements for packaging for specific products, in particular in relation to packaging minimisation where the design or re-design of products can lead to packaging that is environmentally less impactful”. Some obligations introduced by the ESPR, such as the DPP, may affect the packaging of a product, if the data carrier is placed on the packaging. Information such as CE markings, batch or serial numbers and the manufacturer’s or importer’s identification and contact details may also feature on packaging.
This is further explained in the Commission’s FAQ on the ESPR: “the general principle is that ESPR will only take the lead on regulating products when their environmental sustainability dimensions either cannot or have not been fully and appropriately addressed by other instruments. If these dimensions are adequately addressed by other instruments, no action under [the ESPR] is likely to be taken.” The Commission confirmed that this approach applies to packaging, due to the adoption of the PPWR.
The Commission added that the ESPR “will not […] set general ecodesign requirements for packaging as a product group because these requirements are already contained in the sectoral legislation.” Indeed, packaging is not included among the 11 product groups prioritised in the First Working Plan of the ESPR, (iron and steel, aluminium, textiles (garments and footwear), furniture (including mattresses), tires, detergents, paints, lubricants, chemicals, energy-related products (including new measures and updates), ICT products, and other electronics.
At the same time, Annex I of the ESPR lists, among parameters used “as a basis for improving the product aspects”, “weight and volume of the product and its packaging, and the product-to-packaging ratio” (point (j)), and “amounts of waste generated, including plastic waste and packaging waste and their ease of re-use, and amounts of hazardous waste generated” (point (r)). It cannot thus be excluded that delegated acts that will be adopted based on the ESPR may concern packaging-to-product ratio and packaging waste minimization.