Whether it’s cups, lids, plates, containers or cutlery, fast food restaurants must use reusable tableware for meals and drinks served at the table from 2023, according to the Anti-Waste and Circular Economy Act (Agec). in 2020. This packaging will be banned, regardless of its material: whether it is plastic or cardboard, they will disappear in 2023. Only that which is recyclable and therefore washable will be allowed. The measure particularly concerns chains such as McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC or Domino’s Pizza. Fast food chains serve six billion meals a year in 30,000 sales points in France, generating 180,000 tons of waste each year. “It is an emblematic measure. If it is put to good use tomorrow, it will make a very tangible difference to people, it is undeniably going in the right direction“, assesses Moira Tourneur, from the NGO Zero Waste France.
McDonald’s in Levallois-Perret (Hauts-de-Seine) is a pilot company employing 70 people. For a year, they tested different reusable glass or porcelain containers; before the chain chose titanium plastic, known to be very resistant. “Everything that used to be cardboard is now recyclable plastic. We had to review the procedures in the kitchen, separate the orders on the spot from those to be taken away, provide storage space…“, detailed Maria Varela, the director. However, there are some exceptions to this rule. For example, the thin paper around the burgers, which is used to ensure their maintenance, will always be approved. Also, take-out orders will always be allowed. wrapped in disposable products In Levallois-Perret, the McDonald’s restaurant accounts for 80% of its sales through delivery or take-out – compared to 50% on average for the 1,527 McDonald’s in France.
An application that is compromised
By January 1, 90% of the chain’s restaurants will be ready, according to a spokesperson for McDonald’s France. Customers still sometimes throw the containers in the trash… or take them away, especially young people who are used to finishing their drink outside the establishment. At Subway, we fulfill an obligation to “95% relate to smallpox“according to a spokeswoman, he also asked”several months of experiments and tests“, one”information campaign” with franchisees and indoor displays intended for customers. Despite “immediate environmental benefit“what this measure constitutes is its application “threatened“, assessed five NGOs in a column published by The Sunday newspaper the beginning of December. Because if certain actors “show goodwill“, others “will very likely exceed the January 1st deadline“, worry Surfrider, Zero Waste France, No Plastic in my Sea, Collectif EC2027 and Réseau Consigne, who call on consumers to “penalize brands that do not comply with the law” and the government to monitor the application of the law. In fact, with less than two weeks to go, the major retailers are reluctant to detail their level of preparation and the investment made. As for the European packaging sector (EPPA), she believes that recyclable service has “ultimately a worse environmental balance than paper packaging“.She”must be washed and dried“with great amplification”energy, water and cleaning agents“, its president Éric Le Lay emphasized in a recent column. The anti-waste law of which this measure is part is intended to limit the pollution of plastic and cardboard in France with a view to the total elimination of single-use plastics by 2040.