Packaging regulation in food service and takeaway
The hospitality, food service and catering sector has three deadlines of its own, ahead of the format bans: the system for consumer-brought containers by 12 February 2027, the reusable option by 12 February 2028, and the Annex V bans from 1 January 2030.
- Legal reference
- Arts. 32-33 · Annex V
- Last updated
- Official text
- Regulation (EU) 2025/40
The software for packaging compliance qualifies the role, compiles the technical documentation and the declaration. Generate your documents for free
These are obligations falling on the final distributor, that is, whoever makes the packaged product available to the end user.
The consumer-brought container, from 12 February 2027
Article 32 requires final distributors in the sector that use takeaway packaging, for hot or cold beverages and for ready-made food, to give consumers "a system that allows them to bring their own container to be filled".
Paragraph 2 adds a condition affecting pricing: when the consumer brings their own container, products must be offered "at prices no higher, and on conditions no less favourable, than for the sale of the same product’s sales unit with single-use packaging".
The reusable option, from 12 February 2028
Article 33 requires the same final distributors to offer consumers "the option of obtaining products in reusable packaging within a reuse system", for hot or cold beverages and for ready-made food intended for immediate consumption.
The information must be given at the point of sale, "by means of clearly visible and legible information panels or signage", and the same rule on pricing applies: no higher than for the single-use sales unit.
The formats banned from 1 January 2030
Article 25 bans placing on the market the formats listed in Annex V. Two entries concern the sector directly.
| Format | Restriction |
|---|---|
| Single-use plastic for food and beverages consumed on the premises | Single-use trays, plates and cups, bags, boxes, filled and intended for consumption in dedicated dining areas, indoor and outdoor. Establishments without access to drinking water are exempted |
| Single-use plastic for individual portions | Sachets, tubs, trays and boxes containing individual portions of condiments, preserves, sauces, coffee creamer and sugar. Excluded are packaging supplied together with ready-to-eat takeaway food intended for immediate consumption, and packaging needed to ensure safety and hygiene in hospitals, clinics and residential care facilities |
Article 25(4) allows Member States to permit microenterprises to place on the market the formats listed in point 3 of Annex V, if it is demonstrated that it is not technically feasible to do without that packaging or to access the infrastructure needed for a reuse system.
The documentary obligations, already in force
Whoever makes takeaway packaging available under its own name or trademark, including customised packaging, is considered a manufacturer under Article 21: it draws up the technical documentation under Annex VII and the EU declaration of conformity under Annex VIII for each type of packaging.
Packaging intended for contact with food remains subject to the three PFAS limits under Article 5(5) and to the 100 mg/kg limit on the sum of lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium.
References
Regulation (EU) 2025/40 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 2024 on packaging and packaging waste, in OJ L of 22 January 2025.
- Art. 5(4) and (5) · Heavy metals and PFAS
- Art. 21 · Manufacturer obligations applied to importers and distributors
- Art. 25 and Annex V, points 3 and 4 · Formats banned in the sector
- Art. 32 · Refill obligation for the takeaway food and beverage sector
- Art. 33 · Reuse offer for the takeaway sector
- Annexes VII and VIII · Technical documentation and EU declaration of conformity
Official text: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/40/oj