Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1506254
STiR coffee and tea 35 EU first Regardless of whether pods are made from aluminum, PPL, or bioplastics such as industrially compostable polylactic acid (PLA) or the even newer, home-compostable polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), they will have to comply with regulations set by the Eu- ropean Union (EU). After all, Europe alone accounts for a whopping three quarters of total global sales of single-serve capsules across all systems and cup materials. "Whatever happens in Europe has implications for the global industry," Fong ob- served. Some of those implications are already looming on the horizon, thanks to the November 2022 revision of the EU's Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD). Although not yet passed into law, the revision encompasses two very impor- tant sections that will not just influence the capsule industry but have the potential to make or break it. Pods as 'packaging' The Directive, in its original version, had exempted coffee pods from being treated as product packaging. The revision changes that. Capsules are now designated as packaging. That means they will be subject to the same rules for disposal as other types of packaging. If the revised PPWD becomes legally binding, companies that fill capsules must pay a packaging tax and comply with EU recyclability targets — or use compostable materials that fulfill mandatory composting requirements, accord- ing to Fong. Another complication involves lids. Aluminum capsules would not be permitted to use lids made of PPL. Likewise, a PPL capsule would not be able to use an aluminum lid. And a PPL pod would have to omit use of a mix using too many other non- recyclable compound materials. Access to waste disposal and recycling facilities also becomes a major concern. "Up until now, facilities simply could reject accepting spent capsules, as they weren't consid- Martyna Fong, director of market intelligence, AMI Ltd. ered packaging," explained Fong. Under the revised PPWD, however, recyclers no longer can opt out. As for compositing, only a tiny proportion of single-serve cap- sules are made of compostable materials at