30 WESTERN PALLET
Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). EPAL pallets fall within the scope of the proposed regulation to improve the reuse and recycling of packaging. The EU Commission’s proposal has been the subject of very controversial discussion since its publication last November, so that it is currently not foreseeable when and with what content the PPWR will be adopted.
However, the EPAL Board agrees with the EU Commission’s objectives and, therefore, supports them. The EPAL Board has therefore decided that, regardless of the outcome of the ongoing legislative process, EPAL will already start to further develop the open EPAL pallet pool in accordance with the requirements of the PPWR.
“The open EPAL pallet pool already meets most of the requirements of the EU Commission’s proposal for a Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation,” remarked Jarek Maciążek, President of EPAL.
“The reuse and recycling of packaging, as envisaged by the European Commission, has been one of the central components of the EPAL open pallet pool for decades,” he continued. “Therefore, it is not surprising that the definition of open loop systems in the PPWR describes almost exactly how the open EPAL pallet pool works. But the EPAL pallet pool, which is already very sustainable, can also be further improved. In doing so, we would like to implement the good ideas of the PPWR and make the exchange of EPAL pallets even easier and more transparent. More use of exchangeable EPAL pallets means more sustainability and climate protection in goods and transport logistics.”
EPAL also announced a partial change in brand messaging. Since 2019, EPAL has used the slogan “THE PALLET SYSTEM”. The board of EPAL has now decided to change that wording to “THE OPEN PALLET POOL.”
“With the new claim “THE OPEN PALLET POOL”, we want to convey the uniqueness of EPAL even better – the reuse and exchange of EPAL pallets in an open exchange pool that is freely accessible to all users from industry and trade,” said Bernd Dörre, CEO of EPAL.
“We would like to show this singularity of EPAL compared to other suppliers – regardless of whether they are closed pools or other pallet suppliers – with the new claim “THE OPEN PALLET POOL”. There is no other pallet pool like the open EPAL pallet pool,” he said.
Representatives from more than 20 European countries attended the meeting in Amsterdam. The EPAL General Assembly 2024 will take place in Rome in June 2024 at the invitation of EPAL Italia.
EPAL General Assembly
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