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Packaging and Packaging Waste

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) fully recognises the importance of the environment and sustainability for future food security. In this context, the issue of packaging and in particular plastics is both important and currently very high-profile.

Packaging plays an integral role in the food and drink sector by protecting and preserving food and drink products throughout the supply chain and thereby helping to prevent food waste and contributing to wider product sustainability goals. It also often continues to play an important functional role even after purchase by the final consumer.

FDF fully recognises that more needs to be done to reduce litter and marine pollution and drive up recycling across all materials, including plastics. This needs to encompass increasing the capture of packaging from products consumed on-the-go as well as at home. We are fully committed to working with all the UK Governments and other stakeholders on the reforms needed to the current packaging producer responsibility regulations and on potentially other interventions in order to achieve this.

FDF is also proud to be a founding signatory of the UK Plastics Pact, designed to bring together the entire plastics value chain under one holistic approach and one ambitious set of targets. We look forward to working with WRAP and the other signatories to the Pact on the key actions and challenges that lie ahead in order to deliver the 2025 targets. Through our role as a supporting organisation to the Pact we will also look to encourage wider member engagement in this important programme.

FDF members have consistently demonstrated their commitment to reducing the negative impacts of food and drink packaging. This includes their contribution to the implementation of the FDF Sustainability Ambition and its predecessor, the Five-fold Environmental Ambition, and their contributions to the WRAP Courtauld Commitment, particularly the three previous phases. FDF and member companies have also worked on producing a Sustainable Packaging Roadmap published under the aegis of our European Association, FoodDrink Europe.

Other resources:

Sustainable packaging checklist, produced jointly by FDF and INCPEN

WRAP recycling guidelines

UK Plastics Pact

FoodDrinkEurope's Sustainable Packaging Roadmap

FDF's Ambition 2025

Recyclability design guidelines

FDF's Sustainability Resource Hub

Brief on proposed European Single-Use Plastics Directive' and qualifier (members only)