On August 12, 2026, the European Union's Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2025/40, the PPWR) enters into general application, and its first substantive restriction bites immediately: food-contact packaging containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) above strict limits can no longer be placed on the EU market. The measure, announced by the European Commission on August 11, 2026, targets the "forever chemicals" used to repel grease and water in takeaway containers, fast-food wrappers, microwave popcorn bags, bakery paper and pizza boxes.
For compliance leads, the transition is not interpretive. From August 12, placing non-compliant PFAS-containing food-contact packaging on the EU market is a breach of a directly applicable EU regulation, enforceable through Member State market surveillance under Regulation (EU) 2019/1020. The PPWR replaces the former Directive 94/62/EC with a single harmonised rulebook designed to consolidate a fragmented internal market for packaging and support the EU transition to a competitive circular economy by 2050.
What changes on August 12, 2026?
The headline measure is the PFAS restriction in food-contact packaging. Food-contact packaging containing PFAS above the regulation's strict limits can no longer be placed on the EU market. PFAS are a group of highly persistent substances that accumulate in the environment and the human body, and they have been widely used in grease- and water-repellent paper-based food packaging. The restriction is designed to reduce both human exposure and environmental release of these harmful substances.
Two further harmonisation measures apply from the same date. First, definitions for manufacturers and for producers responsible for extended producer responsibility (EPR) are now aligned across the EU, closing the divergent national interpretations that complicated multi-market placement under the old directive. Second, packaging must carry certain markings and information so that the manufacturer or importer can be identified and contacted, giving market surveillance authorities a clear enforcement handle across borders.
Who must act, and what do they have to do?
The restriction lands on two interlocking groups. Packaging manufacturers and converters, including players such as Amcor, Mondi, Smurfit Kappa and Tetra Pak, must ensure that paper-based food-contact stock placed on the EU market from August 12 meets the PFAS limits, which in practice means completing the shift to alternative chemistries, coatings or uncoated substrates already piloted ahead of the deadline. Food and fast-food companies placing packaging on the market under their own brands, including Nestle, Unilever, Danone, McDonald's and Burger King, carry the same placement obligation and must verify compliance through their supply chains, not merely their direct suppliers.
The operational checklist is direct: confirm which SKUs use PFAS-containing food-contact materials, obtain conformity documentation from upstream converters, validate that packaging placed on the market from August 12 is within the limits, and update EPR registrations and packaging markings to reflect the harmonised definitions. Because the PPWR is a regulation, not a directive, there is no transposition wait: the obligation is enforceable from day one in every Member State.
What else applies now, and what comes later?
August 12 is the start of a phased timeline, not its endpoint. The majority of the PPWR's substantive obligations become applicable in 2030, with an intermediate labelling milestone in 2028. The deadline ladder below sets out the key compliance milestones.
| Date | Obligation applying |
|---|---|
| August 12, 2026 | PFAS restriction in food-contact packaging; harmonised manufacturer and EPR producer definitions; packaging markings and identification |
| 2028 | Harmonised EU labelling system for packaging to facilitate waste-sorting |
| 2030 | Waste-reduction measures (empty-space limits, reuse targets, single-use plastic format restrictions in hotels and restaurants); mandatory recycled plastic content in new plastic packaging; all packaging must be recyclable |
The 2030 wave is where the bulk of the packaging redesign, recyclability and recycled-content obligations bite, and the Commission is advancing secondary legislation now so that implementing acts land in time for industry to prepare. Without action, the Commission projects EU packaging waste growing 19% by 2030 and plastic packaging waste rising as much as 46%.
How is the Commission supporting implementation?
The Commission published implementation guidelines in March 2026 (document C(2026)3702) and updated Frequently Asked Questions, both of which include practical information on the application of the new PFAS restrictions for businesses, national authorities and other stakeholders. Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy Jessika Roswall emphasised that the regulation replaces fragmented national rules while acknowledging adjustment costs, and that the Commission has worked with market operators to implement the rules pragmatically. Continuous, per-jurisdiction real-time monitoring surfaces this kind of phased application milestone the moment it publishes, so compliance teams are not caught working from a superseded directive.
Take advantage of this real-time watch
What to do next: confirm whether your food-contact packaging SKUs contain PFAS above the PPWR limits, collect conformity documentation from your converters before August 12, verify that packaging markings and EPR registrations reflect the new harmonised definitions, and brief procurement and packaging-engineering teams on the 2028 labelling and 2030 recyclability and recycled-content obligations now so that reformulation cycles are not compressed later.
