In a letter to the European Commission, the European Federation of Glass Packaging Manufacturers (FEVE) and companies in the sector have raised concerns that overly restrictive regulations could limit design freedom, hinder product differentiation, and obstruct investment in new solutions that support both sustainability and market performance, according to the association’s statement.
The new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) proposes that all packaging be reduced to the “minimum necessary” by January 1, 2030, “explicitly excluding factors like product presentation, marketing, brand individuality, and consumer acceptance,” the federation emphasized.
FEVE argues that for sectors dependent on design, this requirement represents a “significant restriction on innovation and investment, affecting the competitiveness of European products in global markets where these limitations do not exist.”
“With six factories, 3,500 jobs, and over 6 billion glass packages produced annually, more than 60% of which are for external markets, Portugal is the largest per capita producer of glass packaging in Europe,” stated Tiago Moreira da Silva, president of the Portuguese Glass Packaging Industry Association (AIVE), in the same statement.
Nationally, he added, the sector also contributes “decisively” to essential value chains such as wines, spirits, and food.
For the executive, the current PPWR rules, “by ignoring the importance of differentiation, design, and brand identity, undermine the positioning of these sectors and, consequently, weaken the national and European economy.”
According to the available data, within the European Union, glass packaging supports 130 factories, directly employs 50,000 people, contributes to more than 825,000 indirect jobs across different value chains, and products packaged in glass account for about 140 billion euros in annual global exports.
“Despite this contribution, the current drafting of the PPWR introduces legal and operational uncertainty, hampers adaptability and innovation, and threatens to discourage investment in both industrial modernization and decarbonization, areas where the industry has demonstrated leadership, with more efficient furnaces, increased recycled glass incorporation, and technology projects aimed at emission reduction,” the federation noted.
