Brussels, 25 October 2021 – The deliberate destruction and disposal of unsold or returned goods by European producers and online retailers contradicts the EU Green Deal and Circular Economy Action Plan, and must be banned, urge Ökopol and the European Environmental Bureau in a new policy briefing published today [1].
Belgium, France and Germany have taken steps to address the destruction of unsold goods in their national legislation, but campaigners warn such initiatives must be upscaled at the single-market level in order to be effective.
Stéphane Arditi, Director of Circular Economy at the EEB, said: “This outrage cannot be solved at the national level, as long as products can be exported and destroyed elsewhere. The Commission must build on national solutions and ban the destruction of unsold goods at the EU level. We cannot afford to send perfectly viable products to waste while precious resources are depleted to make new ones”.
Projections show the value of destroyed electronics and clothing in the EU will amount to €21.74 billion by 2022, which is larger than the entire GDP of Cyprus for the year 2020. If no policy measures are taken, this could increase to up to €71.29 billion by 2030, as much as the revenue generated by the entire German e-commerce market in 2019.
ENDS
Notes to the editor