Kickstart: Making changes today to benefit future generations

Businesses and residents in Europe will be seeing some big changes to packaging in the coming years if a European Commission proposal goes through. The new rules, released Nov. 30, would set very specific targets for recycling, waste reduction and recyclability over the coming years, with a target of being climate neutral by 2050.

Karen Laird, editor of our sister paper Sustainable Plastics, talked with PN Editor Don Loepp about some details of the proposal during the Dec. 6 Sustainable Plastics Live webinar (free to PN subscribers) and said it's very likely that the proposal will be accepted.

"In general, it's something the public also wants," she said. "I don't know if the public quite understands what the ramifications are, but everybody wants packaging waste to go away. We have to find a way to make that happen and that's what the European Commission has come up with."

Expect some changes to happen quickly, such as eliminating the single-use plastic wrap on an individual cucumber, she said. But at the same time, leaders in business and government — as well as the public — will have to weigh the value in reducing packaging waste with increased food waste due to items spoiled due to a lack of protective packaging.

And while 2050 may seem a long way away, people focused on making changes now recognize the importance of the work, Karen noted.

"I know I'm probably not going to be there when it happens, but I'm perfectly willing to help make it happen," she said.

Following up on something Don Loepp mentioned last week, a seaweed-based alternative to plastic film is at the center of a big spotlight as one of the winners of the Earthshot Prize, a project backed by the United Kingdom's Prince William. Notpla and the other winners received a 1 million pound ($1.21 million) prize during a Dec. 4 awards ceremony.

(And if Prince William isn't a big enough name to create buzz, the award was announced by soccer megastar David Beckham.)

Notpla uses seaweed as the base of a plastic film replacement on items such as liquid sachets — it was used as an edible package for electrolyte drinks at the London marathon in 2019 — and in 2022 has been used on 1 million takeout containers, the company said.

Co-founder and CEO Pierre Paslier said in a video as part of the awards ceremony that seaweed naturally breaks down in the environment, making it possible for a fully compostable package.

The awards ceremony can be seen on YouTube. Notpla is recognized about 30 minutes into the one-hour event.

If you're planning travel to Europe soon, need to buy new luggage and want to be sustainably chic, you may want to consider something from the "Re:cycled Collection," made by Solo NY from PET bottles recovered from landfills or near oceans and waterways and ABS made from household appliances and automobile parts.

The New York-based luggage company first debuted Re:cycled in 2020 and has just added more items, Sustainable Plastics writes.

The line comes in both hard-sided and soft-sided options.

Solo has set a goal to eliminate 40 million plastic water bottles from landfills by 2024.