Costanza Mariotta, Jessica Tuscano
European legislation sets ambitious recycling targets for 2025 and 2030 for packaging waste, which represents one of the main waste streams monitored. The recycling rate of packaging waste, calculated as the ratio between the quantity of waste recycled and the quantity of waste generated, monitors progress towards a circular economy by assessing its reintroduction into industrial cycles as secondary raw materials.
With a view to ensuring uniform conditions for measuring the new targets, based on the actual quantity of packaging waste reprocessed into new products, materials or substances, stringent calculation methodologies have been defined at European level. With the application of the new methodologies, the targets set for 2025 have already been achieved for all packaging fractions, including plastics.
For the plastic fraction, however, increasing recycling remains a priority in view of the 2030 target (55%), including through the development of new treatment technologies, especially for those types of waste that are currently difficult to recover through mechanical processes.
The indicator measures the percentage of packaging waste recycled relative to packaging waste generated. Annual packaging waste generation is assumed to be equivalent to the quantity of packaging placed on the market during the same period. The quantity placed on the market is derived from the production of empty packaging plus packaging imports, net of exports.
In order to ensure data reliability, completeness and comparability, data from organisations responsible for fulfilling extended producer responsibility obligations take into account, where relevant and applicable, specific correction factors.
To monitor progress towards a circular economy within the thematic area of waste management. The circular economy is based on resource optimisation, achievable through eco-design strategies that ensure greater product durability, reusability, upgradability and repairability, increased use of recycled materials, and improved recyclability at end of life, thereby reducing environmental impacts and waste generation.
The recycling rate of packaging waste directly monitors the quantity of material reintroduced into the economy.
Decision 2005/270/EC, as amended by Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/665, establishes the format and rules for the calculation, verification and reporting of data on packaging and packaging waste.
Directive 94/62/EC set specific recycling and recovery targets for packaging waste, which were increased with the entry into force of the directives forming part of the Circular Economy Package. These amendments were transposed into national law in Part IV of Legislative Decree No. 152/2006, establishing new ambitious minimum recycling targets, by weight, for 2025 and 2030. These targets were confirmed by Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste, which repealed Directive 94/62/EC.
Minimum recycling targets for 2025: total packaging waste, by weight: 65%.
By specific material, by weight: 50% for plastics; 25% for wood; 70% for ferrous metals; 50% for aluminium; 70% for glass; 75% for paper and cardboard.
Minimum recycling targets for 2030: total packaging waste, by weight: 70%.
By specific material, by weight: 55% for plastics; 30% for wood; 80% for ferrous metals; 60% for aluminium; 75% for glass; 85% for paper and cardboard.
ISPRA - Rapporto Rifiuti Urbani n. 419/2025 (and previous editions)
CONAI - Relazione generale consuntiva 2024
Supply chain consortia and autonomous systems - Specific prevention plans
Use the information contained in the database of annual environmental declarations (MUD) carried out by subjects obliged under current legislation, which are not accessible to the public, and those in the possession of CONAI and the supply chain consortia and autonomous systems.
National
2011-2024
Packaging waste consists of all packaging used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and presentation of goods, from raw materials to finished products, from the producer to the user or consumer, which has been discarded and has become waste. It is divided into paper and cardboard, plastic, wood, steel, aluminium and glass packaging.
The indicator is obtained as the ratio between the quantity of packaging waste recycled and the total quantity of packaging waste generated. Annual packaging waste generation is assumed to be equivalent to the quantity of packaging placed on the market during the same period. The quantity placed on the market is derived from the production of empty packaging plus packaging imports, net of exports, and takes into account the correction factors required to ensure data reliability, completeness and comparability.
The indicator is expressed as a percentage (%), both overall and for each individual material fraction.
Starting from data on packaging waste recycled in the 2020 reference year, the new calculation rules introduced by Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/665 of 17 April 2019, amending Decision 2005/270/EC, apply in full. Under these rules, the weight of packaging waste recovered or recycled refers to the quantity of packaging waste entering an actual recovery or recycling process.
For the uniform application of the calculation rules and the comparability of data, the calculation point is specified for the main packaging materials. This is understood as the point at which packaging waste enters the recycling operation through which the waste is reprocessed into products, materials or substances that are not waste, or the point at which the waste ceases to be waste following a preparatory operation before being reprocessed.
The recycling rate also takes into account the quantities of waste reconditioned and placed back on the market following reprocessing activities.
With the application of the new calculation methodologies from 2020 onwards, the targets set for 2025 have already been achieved for all packaging fractions, including plastics, whose effective recycling rate, thanks to the measures implemented at national level, exceeded 50% for the first time in 2024, corresponding to the target set for 2025 (Figure 2).
Overall, packaging waste recycled in 2024 accounted for 76.7% of the quantities placed on the market, exceeding the 2025 target of 65% by more than 10 percentage points (Table 3 and Figure 2).
In 2023, compared with other European Union countries, Italy ranked among the top performers in terms of packaging waste recycling rate, well above the European average (Figure 3).
The trend in the recycling rate over the last three-year period, 2022-2024, was positive, increasing from 70.7% in 2022 to 76.7% in 2024, thereby also reaching and exceeding the 2030 target (Table 3).
The quantity of packaging placed on the national market stood at almost 14 million tonnes, slightly increasing compared with 2023 (+0.7%, corresponding to an additional 94 thousand tonnes), in line with the trend of socioeconomic indicators. Indeed, 2024 closed with growth in gross domestic product and final consumption expenditure on the economic territory of around 1%, respectively 0.7% and 1.3%, chain-linked volumes with reference year 2020. Compared with 2011, this figure shows an increase of approximately 20% (Table 1 and Figure 1).
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Table 1: Packaging placed on the market by material type Fonte
CONAI and Consortia |
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Table 2: Quantity of packaging waste recycled by material type Fonte
ISPRA processing based on CONAI and Consortia data. Legenda
*Calculated using the new calculation methodology, including wooden packaging reconditioned and placed back on the market following reprocessing activities. |
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Table 3: Packaging recycling rate by material type Fonte
ISPRA processing based on CONAI and Consortia data. Legenda
*Calculated using the new calculation methodology, including wooden packaging reconditioned and placed back on the market following reprocessing activities. |
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Figure 1: Packaging placed on the national market and quantity of packaging recycled Fonte
CONAI and Consortia |
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Figure 2: Packaging recycling rate by material type compared with 2008 and 2025 targets (2024) Fonte
ISPRA processing based on CONAI and Consortia data. |
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Figure 3: Packaging recycling rate at European level (2023) Fonte
ISPRA processing based on Eurostat data. |
European legislation has introduced ambitious recycling targets for 2025 and 2030 for packaging waste, which represents one of the main monitored waste streams. In order to ensure uniform conditions for measuring the new targets, based on the actual quantity of packaging waste reprocessed into new products, materials or substances, stringent calculation methodologies have also been defined at European level for packaging waste.
For some material fractions, the national reporting system was already aligned with the new calculation rules, whereas for others, such as plastics and steel, their application led to a reduction in the recycling rate. This is due to the effect of the new assessment of rejects on the recycling rate, as well as issues related to the reporting of composite packaging and to the share of packaging in waste incineration ashes.
For the plastic fraction, increasing recycling remains a priority in view of the 2030 target of 55%, including through the development of new treatment technologies, especially for those types of waste that are currently difficult to recover through mechanical processes.
It is also necessary to reduce existing territorial gaps. In this context, important measures are included both in the National Waste Management Programme (PNGR) and in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). Furthermore, within the development of a National Plastics Strategy, this issue will need to be addressed coherently, ensuring, on the one hand, control of dispersion into the environment and, on the other, greater valorisation. To this end, it will be useful to define targets, indicators, instruments and governance arrangements for monitoring.