The own garbage to a Minimum to reduce the consumption of meat set and always-growing E-mobility – never before has the topic of sustainability was as evident as it is in today’s time.

In order to conserve the environment, many people are willing to reconsider your own habits and your current life.

Despite the current Phase of the shift is increased according to the results of the Federal Environment Agency (UBA), the resulting packaging waste by 2017 in comparison to the year 2016.

These Figures were advent in the framework of the European week of waste prevention in a report and recycling of packaging in Germany was published.

Packaging waste in Germany continues to rise

Overall, the results showed that 18.7 million tonnes of packaging waste in the year 2017 – and this alone in Germany. It is sale-To-Transport, reusable packaging, packaging of pollutant-containing Products and disposable parts of the returnable packaging stock.

In comparison to the previous year, in 2016 the amount of waste to climb by another three percent.

From these Figures, an appalling result in the end result of an average of 226.5 pounds of packaging waste per capita and year. Private end-users were involved in the overall volumes with a share of 47 percent – 3.8 percent more than in 2016. At the time, the resulting waste still amounted to 107 pounds per head and year.

The President of the Federal environment Agency, Maria Krautzberger said: “We consume a lot to a lot of packaging. This is bad for the environment and for the consumption of raw materials.”

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How is the increasing packaging consumption to be able to?

The very high packaging waste can be achieved by a variety of reasons to explain this.

1. Economic growth

Due to the ever-increasing economy, more and more products are produced and sold – this leads to more packaging waste.

2. Konzumgewohnheiten and extra wishes

Dosing AIDS and Reclosability – the consumer-oriented society places a value on additional functions of packaging. Some of these functions and desires but are absolutely unnecessary and much too complex to be processed.

3. New Trends complicate the Recycling

Especially, smaller portions, an active shipping trade and out-of-home delight consumption increasing in popularity – and therefore also the packaging waste.

Too many foods are Packed in plastic

While walking through the supermarket one is particularly striking: Many foods are wrapped several times in plastic or other packaging options – none of them is sustainable.

Maria Krautzberger added: “We must avoid waste in the production phase. Unnecessary and unnecessary material-intensive packaging should therefore be omitted. Often one sees the opposite, though, and even the toothpaste tube is Packed time. We need a lot more reusable, not only in soda and beer. The coffee, you can bring in reusable cups and if you take his food, should be able to do well in reusable containers.“

The recycling process can be improved

Although Germany stands on the subject of Recycling is good, there is still a need for improvement.

Of the total packaging waste nearly 70 percent could be redirected to pay for Recycling – the Rest was mainly utilized for energy.

The recycling rate looks largely good, however, varies for the different packaging – it is highest in the case of glass, paper and cardboard, and steel. The lowest rate was in plastics, and wood demonstrated.

Maria Krautzberger know: “Despite the good recycling rate, we need to strengthen the Recycling and recycled material use, as well as to conserve resources.”

New law sets recycling rate

On 01.01.2019 was introduced in the Federal Republic of Germany law, which aims to improve the recyclability of packaging and the promotion of reusable strengths.

The act on Packaging regulates the current recycling rate and sets – plastic packaging must be supplied from 2019 to at least 58.5 percent of the material recycled. In the year 2022, this rate should be increased to 63 percent.

In addition, the public packaging register LUCID was introduced, it covered all of the companies that bring packaging into circulation and Recycling of the packaging involved.

Violations can be punished – the supervision of the Federal environment Agency.

Sources

  • The Federal environment Agency (2019): packaging consumption in the year 2017, continued to increase, retrieved on 18.11.2019: https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/presse/pressemitteilungen/verpackungsverbrauch-im-jahr-2017-weiter-gestiegen
  • The Federal environment Agency (2019): law on the placing on the market, the withdrawal and the high-quality recycling of packaging, archived from the original on 18.11.2019: https://www.bmu.de/gesetz/gesetz-ueber-das-inverkehrbringen-die-ruecknahme-und-die-hochwertige-verwertung-von-verpackungen/

Antonia Hagedorn

*The post “Despite sustainability trend: Germany is producing so much packaging waste as never before” published by FitForFun. Contact with the executives here.