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"The Waste Law of 2011-2022" On reducing the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
The Department of Environment of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, in the framework of its inspections, informs that single-use products have been identified to be circulating in the market, which, while declared as biodegradable from sugar cane and without plastic material, according to the data of their production companies, contain a quantity of at least one polymer.
It is recalled that, in accordance with European Directive 2019/904/EU, harmonised legislation and EU guidelines, the following single-use plastic products are prohibited from being placed and made available on the market:
[*]Plastic-stemmed cotton buds (except those falling under medical devices) [*]Cutlery (forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks) [*]Plates [*]Straws (except those falling under medical devices) [*]Beverage stirrers [*]Sticks attached to and supporting balloons, other than balloons for industrial or other professional use and not distributed to consumers, including mechanisms for such rods. Food containers made of expanded polystyrene. Containers, such as boxes with or without lids, in which foodstuffs are placed which:
(a) Are intended for immediate consumption either on or off the premises; (b) Are normally consumed from the container; and
(c) Are ready for consumption without further preparation [*]Beverage containers made of expanded polystyrene and their lids and covers. [*]Expanded polystyrene beverage cups and their lids and covers. [*]All products made of biodegradable plastic.
All polymers and natural polymers that have been chemically modified (such as PLA, CPLA, Green PE, etc.) are covered by the ban on single-use plastics, regardless of whether they are certified (EN-13432) as being 100% biodegradable.
Plastics produced with modified natural polymers or plastics produced from biological, mineral or composite raw materials do not occur in nature and therefore fall under the bans. The definition of plastics covers polymer-based rubber articles and biodegradable plastics, whether derived from biomass or intended to biodegrade over time. Polymers produced through an industrial fermentation process are not considered natural polymers, therefore polymers derived from biosynthesis through man-made cultivation and fermentation processes in industrial environments are not considered natural polymers and are covered by the prohibitions. In general, if a polymer results from an industrial process and the same type of polymer happens to occur in nature, the polymer produced is not classified as a natural polymer.
Therefore, plastic products produced wholly or partly from chemically modified polymers are covered by the prohibitions. The legislation does not provide for a minimum threshold for the plastic content of a single-use product.
Based on the above, all producers and importers who place alternative, biodegradable disposable products on the market, are requested to submit to the Department of Environment by 14/7/2023, laboratory analyses for each product, by an independent accredited laboratory, which explicitly certify that they do not contain any type of polymer, including chemically modified natural polymers.
Data should be sent to director@environment.moa.gov.cy .
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