Packaging / Advertising & Office

Recently, Taiwan has issued a "regulation" on the restriction of PVC packaging, announcing that the manufacture, import and sale of food packaging containers containing PVC will be banned from July 1, 2023, in order to significantly reduce or even eliminate the proportion of PVC food packaging in international trade.

As early as November 15 last year, Taiwan's environmental protection authority issued a draft international trade-related advance notice on "restricting the manufacture, import and sale of flat packaging materials containing PVC, announcing that containers should be recycled and non-plate washable tableware".

The draft clearly requires that flat packaging materials, recyclable containers and washable tableware containing polyvinyl chloride (PVC) shall not be filled with food, dairy products, beverages or water, condiments, drugs, alcohol, vitamin oral liquid or animal food feed, and the above goods containing PVC shall not carry out international trade in Taiwan after November 1, 2022, The commodities that have been produced or imported before November 1, 2022 are not within the control scope of the draft.

In addition, David Parker, the Minister of Environment of the New Zealand Government, announced in June that the New Zealand Government was about to carry out the elimination of plastics and promised to eliminate all food and beverage packaging containing PVC by the middle of 2025. It will begin at the end of next year to phase out some food packaging and disposable plastics that are difficult to recycle, so as to realize the plan to completely stop such supplies by July 2025.

This time, the targets include food and beverage packaging made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polystyrene that is difficult to recycle, as well as some degradable plastic products, such as beverage blenders, cotton swabs, disposable product bags, dishes and bowls, tableware, straws and fruit labels.

Products that are easier to degrade, such as oxidative degradable plastics and photodegradable plastics, are also the goal of the government's plan, because such plastics cannot be recycled, and will quickly decompose into small micro-plastics, causing marine pollution.

These plastic products will usually become waste from landfills and pollute the soil, waterways and oceans of New Zealand.

Eliminating unnecessary and problematic plastics will help reduce the amount of landfills, improve the recycling system and encourage people to reuse or use environmentally friendly alternatives.

Since last year, many countries have also issued relevant plans to eliminate PVC food packaging as a new trend in international trade.