The EU Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) transition period has ended and as of 12 August 2026 its provisions are now binding across EU countries. This has a knock on impact for any UK and EU business shipping to various European countries, as well as fulfilment service providers.

The EU’s objective by introducing the new regulation is to “facilitate the uniform application of the new packaging rules across the EU and simplify compliance for economic actors and Member States”. Their vision is that this law will contribute to a more “sustainable and competitive packaging sector” across the EU, “strengthening the Single Market for packaging through common rules”.

The new PPWR has implications for those involved in the movement of goods, and in this article we summarise the key considerations of the new regulation for warehouse leaders.

1. Vetting responsibility

Warehouses acting as third-party fulfilment providers have their own dedicated obligations. They must ensure that any packaging they handle on behalf of customers meets specific conditions during storage, packing, addressing and shipping that don’t compromise the packaging’s integrity.

Fulfilment providers also carry a duty of care: they’re only permitted to work with companies that are themselves meeting their PPWR obligations, which effectively puts vetting responsibility on the warehouse operator.

2. Documentation

Documentation is required as an audit trail, not a one-off task. Declarations of conformity and technical documentation are required, and warehouses need to be able to produce them on request from authorities. That means an on-going record-keeping burden sitting inside warehouse operations, not just a compliance box ticked once.

3. Recyclability requirements

Recyclability requirements could reshape what packaging looks like on the belt. From 2030, only grade C or better (70%+ recyclable) packaging will be allowed to market. If a warehouse has any say in packaging spec, that’s a material shift with knock-on effects for how packaging behaves on conveyors and in automated handling.

4. Reverse logistics for reusable packaging

Reuse infrastructure becomes an operational requirement. By 2030 there will be a 40% reusable target for pallets, crates, trays, IBCs and drums, meaning warehouses need the physical systems to receive, sort, clean, track and cycle that packaging back into circulation. This poses a genuine warehouse design and workflow consideration when it comes to return lanes, wash/inspection stations, and tracking to prove compliance.

5. Right-sizing  

The 50% empty-space rule under the PPWR doesn’t just call for less filler material, it means the box itself has to fit the order, not just contain it. For any warehouse where packaging is manually selected from a handful of fixed sizes, that’s a compliance gap as much as a waste problem: oversized boxes packed with void fill are exactly what this rule is designed to phase out. Warehouses with automated pack stations and carton erectors that form boxes to size, rather than pulling from a limited range, are already closer to compliance than they might realise, since right-sizing is built into the process rather than left to a picker’s judgement.

The warehouses best placed for what’s coming aren’t the ones scrambling to add compliance on top of existing processes, they’re the ones where reuse, tracking and right-sizing were already part of how the system was built.

This is exactly the kind of infrastructure Element Logic already builds. Vetting and traceability, reuse and reverse logistics, real-time visibility across the pack process, and right-sized packing built into the automated line. These aren’t a separate PPWR project bolted onto a warehouse. They’re already what a well-designed automated system does.

Element Logic has partnerships with many sustainable packaging automation solution providers that further enable customers to benefit from more efficient, scalable and sustainable fulfilment solutions. Through these partnerships, Element Logic’s customers gain access to packaging automation technologies that can help reduce packaging material usage, lower shipped volume and improve overall packing efficiency.