Bio-based, biodegradable and compostable plastics

Background

The EU Policy Framework on Bio-based, Biodegradable, and Compostable Plastics sets out clear conditions and guidelines to ensure these alternative plastics deliver genuine environmental benefits rather than creating new ecological challenges.

It sets strict criteria for sustainably sourcing bio-based feedstocks, defines application-specific requirements for biodegradability and industrial compostability, and combats greenwashing by eliminating misleading consumer claims.

What are these plastics?

Consumers are widely confused by these different types of plastics. The umbrella term “bio-plastics” is often used to describe very different materials, and the terms “bio-based”, “biodegradable”, and “compostable” may be misleading.

Bio-based plastics are fully or partially made from biological resources, rather than fossil raw materials. They are not necessarily biodegradable or compostable. It is important to examine the full life cycle of bio-based plastics to ensure that they are beneficial to the environment beyond the reduction in the use of fossil resources. This includes changes in land use.

Biodegradable plastics biodegrade in certain conditions at their end-of-life. Compostable plastics - a subset of biodegradable ones – typically decompose in industrial composting facilities, and first need to be collected. Biodegradable and compostable plastics may be made from biological resources or fossil raw materials. These plastics should be used when it is not possible to reduce, reuse or recycle, in line with the circular economy and waste hierarchy principles.

For further information, read this scientific opinion examining the conditions and criteria under which biodegradable plastic applications can be beneficial for the environment.

Why do we have this framework?

The framework was introduced to bring clarity and environmental integrity to a rapidly growing market. Without clear rules:

• "Biodegradable" claims risk encouraging littering if consumers assume items will rapidly decompose anywhere in nature.
• Unregulated bio-based plastics can drive deforestation, biodiversity loss, or land-use competition with food crops if feedstocks are harvested unsustainably.
• Incorrect disposal of compostable or biodegradable plastics in conventional plastic recycling streams contaminates high-quality recycled materials.

The framework ensures these materials are used only in specific applications where they offer proven, net-positive environmental outcomes over conventional plastics.

Alignment with other EU policies

The policy framework operates as a guiding horizontal blueprint across several key EU legislative acts. It directly informs criteria within the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which regulates industrial compostability for specific packaging items (such as tea bags, coffee pods, and sticky labels on fruit).

It also aligns with the Waste Framework Directive on bio-waste management, complements the Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD) — which treats bio-based and biodegradable plastics as plastic under its market restrictions — and supports the Empowering Consumers Directive by banning vague environmental claims that lack certified proof.

Strategic basis

At the strategic level, the framework fulfils a core commitment of the 2020 Circular Economy Action Plan under the European Green Deal.

By steering production toward sustainable organic waste and agricultural residues rather than primary food crops, and by optimising waste recovery systems, the framework directly advances the objectives of the EU Plastics Strategy, the Zero Pollution Action Plan, and the EU Bioeconomy Strategy.