Today's KNOWLEDGE Share : The EU Mandates Attaching Caps to Plastic Bottles and Containers

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share

The caps and lids of single-use plastic bottles are a common kind of waste found on our beaches. Poor management of this waste has led to measures to reduce its environmental impact. In response to this problem, European Directive 2019/904 was developed to prevent and reduce the impact of certain plastic products, especially on the aquatic environment and human health. Specific design measures were introduced to minimize the impact and disposal of plastic products in the environment.

Responsible Design

The measure provided for Article 6 establishes that beverage containers and bottles, as well as composite beverage packaging, with a capacity of up to three litres can be placed on the market only if the plastic caps and lids remain attached to the container during the product’s intended use. Consequently, it creates the need to develop a harmonized standard whose compliance should presume conformity with these requirements.

To ensure manufacturers have sufficient time to adapt their production lines and comply with this design requirement, entry into force was postponed until 3rd July 2024.

Harmonized Standard

To ensure effective implementation of the Directive, development of a harmonized standard was prioritized. 30th May 2023, Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/1060 was enacted, which refers to the harmonized standard with test methods and requirements to demonstrate that plastic caps and lids remain attached to beverage containers.

This harmonized standard corresponds to UNE-EN 17665 “Packaging – Test methods and requirements to demonstrate that plastic caps and lids remain attached to beverage containers”. This standard applies to single-use beverage containers with a capacity of up to three litres.

Compliance Testing

At AIMPLAS, we can perform the tests corresponding to this standard in terms of attachment requirements and:

Attachment strength: we evaluate the tensile strength of caps and lids.

Attachment reliability: we perform repeated-use tests to check if caps stay attached to beverage containers.

source:Aimplas