Coffee capsules made of “standard” plastics and aluminium could soon disappear from the shelves; an exception could be compostable shells made of bioplastics. The European Commission’s current draft of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) envisages the same in Article 8 paragraph 1.

The draft translates to coffee capsules being placed on the market only if they are compostable. “This would mean that common capsules made of aluminium or plastic would no longer be permitted,” says Gregor Spengler, head of packaging, recycling, and sustainability at German industry association Aluminium Deutschland (Düsseldorf; www.aluminiumdeutschland.de) in response to a Plasteurope.com enquiry. Together with umbrella association WVMetalle, Aluminium Deutschland has therefore drafted a position paper on the current draft of the PPWR, in which the assessment of coffee capsules is no longer regulated in Article 8. “As far as we know, this amendment proposal was well received by the European Parliament and European Council,” adds Spengler.

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Unsurprisingly, European Bioplastics (Berlin; www.european-bioplastics.org) welcomes the current draft. “The industry needs legal certainty to drive further investment in securing and expanding production in the EU,” it says in a statement. Compostable capsules certified according to the EN 13432 standard are supposed to decompose at least 90% within a certain time.

As one of the largest distributors of aluminium capsules, Nestlé says it is also following the PPWR debate closely. “For us, it is crucial that the packaging we use does not end up in the environment or in residual waste, but is collected and recycled across the board,” a company spokesperson told PIE.

Related: European Bioplastics welcomes EC's proposed mandate for compostable capsules

As a supplement to the aluminium capsules, Nestlé plans to introduce “home-compostable” paper-based capsules in France and Belgium this year through its subsidiary Nespresso. Similarly, Nescafé Dolce Gusto plants to soon launch Neo coffee pods on the Brazilian market; these are also paper based with a compostable biopolymer coating.

Nothing is in the bag yet – the Council and the European Parliament are currently discussing the PPWR draft published last November. Proposals for amendments are to be introduced in the coming months. After completion of discussions in the EU Parliament and Council, a trilogue between the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council is to take place. Only after this procedure has been completed will the regulation enter into force and apply directly in all EU Member States. It is not yet clear when this will happen; experts expect the final decision to be made in about 18 months.