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Review of the requirements for packaging and other measures to prevent packaging waste
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The European Steel Association (EUROFER) welcomes the work done so far by the European Commission to reduce packaging waste, promote recycling and to analyse potential packaging waste prevention measures.
The Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) actively worked in the past to reduce the negative impacts of packaging on the environment. But now a review is needed in order to make it aligned with the goals of the European Green Deal (GD) and of the new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) towards waste prevention, design for re-use of and recyclability of packaging, inter alia, by reducing the complexity of packaging.
This paper wants to present comments and opinions of the EU steel sector concerning packaging products and in relation to: (1) waste generation; (2) weight & recyclability; (3) products & sustainability; (4) end-of-life & recycling; (5) appropriate measures in relation to the Impact Assessment.
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Brussels, 05 June 2025 – The high level of uncertainty and major disruptions caused by the new U.S. tariffs have dealt a severe blow to recovery expectations in the steel market for 2025. Against the backdrop of broader economic resilience driven by services, industry remains weak, weighing on steel demand and consumption. Recovery is not expected before 2026, and only if positive developments emerge in the global geoeconomic outlook. According to EUROFER’s latest Economic and Steel Market Outlook, the recession in apparent steel consumption will continue in 2025 (-0.9%) for the fourth consecutive year (-1.1% in 2024), contrary to earlier forecasts of growth (+2.2%). A similar trend is expected for steel-using sectors, with another recession in 2025 (-0.5%, after -3.7% in 2024) instead of a projected recovery (+1.6%). Steel imports remained at historically high levels (27%) throughout 2024.
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