Ketchup packets will disappear starting in 2030. A regulation from the European Union will prohibit the sale and use of these containers from this date with the aim of reducing the daily consumption of plastic and single-use containers. All this after before summer the European Parliament will confirm a series of changes that will change the way of consumption as we know it until now. The Regulation, which seeks to address the constant increase in waste, harmonize the rules of the internal market and promote the circular economy, was approved with 476 votes in favor, 129 against and 24 abstentions.
Europe In the coming years, it is heading towards a process of change in terms of environmental awareness that will be reflected in the different laws that will be passed in the near future. Although this entails a cost for the citizens of the member states, the European Parliament seems to be going to impose everything related to green with an iron fist. The first victims of this will be ketchup sachets and other containers for daily use, which will disappear as we know them in 2030.
At the end of April 2024, the member countries of the European Union They voted in favor of eliminating this type of disposable packaging with the aim of reducing the amount of plastic packaging and products that is made on the old continent on a daily basis. So in this way, not only will ketchup packets disappear, but the sale and use of sugar packets or even smaller personal hygiene containers that are used to travel on airplanes, for example, will also be prohibited. .
This law will mean that, starting in 2030, restaurants, hotels and other establishments will be prohibited from making disposable products available to customers. The idea of political representatives is that each citizen carries these containers with them. It must be remembered that last year 2021, the use of certain disposable plastics was already prohibited, such as plates, cutlery, or traditional straws, which were replaced by cardboard straws in establishments that offer fast food.
A person pours ketchup on some French fries.
«The law sets specific reuse objectives for 2030 for packaging alcoholic beverages and non-alcoholic (except, for example, milk, wine, aromatized wine, liqueurs), packaging for transport and sale, as well as collective packaging (which includes several products),” the European Union reported.
Goodbye to ketchup and sugar packets
Just as happened with plastic straws, ketchup packets will disappear from the year 2030, sugar and other personal care products that are not of considerable size. ‘Some types of single-use plastic packaging will be banned from 1 January 2030. These include packaging for unprocessed fresh fruit and vegetables, food and drink packaging served and consumed in cafes and restaurants, those with individual portions (for, for example, condiments, sauces, cream, sugar), small containers of personal hygiene products and very light plastic bags (less than fifteen microns)”, indicated the European Union on your website.
He European Parliament has supported this decision, which represents another prohibition for citizens, in reports provided by Eurostat that highlight that between 2009 and 2010 the amount of daily packaging used increased by 20%. Apparently, in 2021, 84 tons of garbage were generated in terms of packaging and 20% were made of plastic, a material that, according to the European Union It ends up polluting the ocean and worsening the environmental crisis. As this organization reports, only one person generates 180 kilos of packaging per year and the new regulations aim to reduce it by up to 15% until 2040. All thanks to radical measures that will change the way of consumption from one year to the next. as we know it in the European Union.
Now, according to the new rules proposed by the European Union“all packaging (except those made of light wood, cork, textile, rubber, ceramic, porcelain and wax) will have to be recyclable, meeting strict criteria.”
