The EU should focus on three priorities for its circular economy package, according to WRAP.
In its submission to the consultation on the circular economy package, WRAP set out its three priorities, which are:
- The need for an EU vision based on whole-systems thinking
- The need for an EU-wide action on food, including food waste
- The need for EU action to encourage greater use of resource efficient business models.
On the first of these priorities, WRAP wants to see a vision of what Europe would be like in 2025 if ambitious action is taken to create a more circular economy across the EU based on a holistic, whole-systems thinking approach.
This should, according to WRAP, paint a picture of what normal practice would look like in 2025 on issues such as:
- Supply chains – collaboration to address system issues
- Products – designed for durability, reparability, recyclability
- Priority materials (eg food) – all Member States are measuring, preventing, reusing and recycling
- Disposal – all Member States are phasing out disposal of recyclable materials.
WRAP suggests that “food, including food waste, should be a key priority for the package, due to the significant environmental impacts of the food sector and the large tonnage of food waste being created across Europe”.
By prioritising food waste, WRAP thinks the EU should develop an accurate measurement of current food waste arisings, focus on food waste prevention actions, and recognise the holistic nature of the problem.
On developing new resource efficient business models, WRAP would like to see the EU encourage financial institutions to provide the right finance for circular economy propositions, encourage green procurement and use R&D funding mechanisms to understand behavioural drivers that could provide opportunities for the private sector.
The submission can be seen at http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/european-commission-public-consultation-circular-economy
