France bans single-use packaging from fast-food restaurants

The law is part of the country’s efforts to reduce plastic and other types of waste.

The French Government has passed a law banning the use of single-use packaging in restaurants, as reported by the BBC.

Effective from 1 January, the law prohibits major fast-food chains from offering foods in throwaway boxes or single-use cutlery such as knives or forks.

Restaurants that can serve more than 20 customers at a time will start offering reusable plates, cups and cutlery instead of single-use items.

The move is intended to help reduce plastic and other types of waste in France.

Around 30,000 fast food restaurants in France reportedly serve around 6 billion meals a year, generating two million tonnes of waste annually.

But the law has drawn criticism from the European Paper Packaging Alliance (EPPA), which argues that most single-use containers are made of renewable resources and have a recycling rate of 82 percent across the European Union.

It also says making and washing durable items consumes more energy and water, defeating a purpose of the environmental cause.

After several months of testing, the Subway sandwich chain found it needed to mount a “public awareness effort” with franchise operators that included new posters to inform clients to reuse tableware, a spokeswoman told AFP.

At a McDonald’s in the Paris suburb of Levallois-Perret, manager Maria Varela said they needed to hire an additional dishwasher and more hosts to explain that plates, knives and forks must now be separated from trash.

Palm leaf disposable cup, an alternative to traditional plastic single use cup

“At first it was very complicated, both at the counter and with table service,” she said, noting that the kitchen had to be remodelled to cope with the new requirements.

“Everything that was in cardboard is now in reusable plastic. We had to rethink everything in the kitchen, separate take-out from on-site orders, create new storage space.”

“I didn’t know about this but it’s good that it’s mandatory,” said Tom Fresneau, 16, who was eating a burger with a friend at the McDonald’s outside the French capital.

“But it does cost more than paper and cardboard, so I understand if it’s problematic for the smaller fast-food restaurants that might have to raise their prices,” he said.

(Source: https://www.packaging-gateway.com/news/france-plastic-ban-restaurant ; https://phys.org/news/2022-12-france-disposable-packaging-utensils-fast-food.html)