What the directive is
Directive (EU) 2019/904, usually called the Single-Use Plastics Directive or SUPD, targets the plastic items most often found as litter. Unlike food contact law, it is not about whether a material is safe in contact with food. It decides whether certain products may be sold in the EU at all. A PP cutlery kit can have a perfect food contact file under Regulation (EU) 10/2011 and still be barred from the EU market under the SUPD.
Because it is a directive, member states transpose it into national law, and some countries go further than the minimum. The directive also contains measures beyond the bans that apply to items still on the market. The summary here covers the bans that matter most to container and cutlery buyers; for the exact position in each country, confirm with your customs broker or counsel.
What has been banned since 3 July 2021
| Product | Status in the EU | Route for EU buyers |
|---|---|---|
| Single-use plastic cutlery: forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks | Banned from the market since 3 July 2021 | Wooden cutlery kits or other compliant materials |
| Single-use plastic plates | Banned since 3 July 2021 | Paper or board plates without plastic content, per local rules |
| Single-use plastic straws | Banned since 3 July 2021 | Non-plastic routes |
| Expanded polystyrene food containers and cups | Banned since 3 July 2021 | PP, paper or other materials, checked per market |
| PLA and other chemically modified bioplastic versions of the above | Treated as plastic, so also banned | Same as above |
Why PLA does not escape the ban
The question we hear most from cutlery buyers is whether PLA or CPLA solves the problem. It does not. The directive defines plastic to include polymers that have been chemically modified, and PLA, although made from plant starch, is a chemically produced polymer. Bio-based or compostable plastic cutlery is therefore single-use plastic cutlery under the SUPD. A compostable certification does not change that; it answers a different question about end of life, not about whether the product is allowed on the market.
The same logic applies to starch blends. The starch-based containers in this range are, in the partner plant literature, corn starch filed under PP thermoforming, which the desk treats as a starch and PP blend. A spoon or plate made from such a blend still contains plastic and is treated as plastic. Lower plastic content is a fair description of the container; it is not an exemption.
What this means for cutlery kits
The reference disposable cutlery line from partner plants includes PP spoons such as a 136x32 mm, 1.6 g spoon and a 115x31 mm, 1.1 g spoon, and kits that combine a PP spoon with bamboo chopsticks, a napkin and a toothpick in OPP wrap. These kits remain available for markets where local rules allow them, after a check of those rules. For EU buyers the desk offers the wooden cutlery route instead: wooden forks, knives and spoons, with napkins and wrap chosen to keep the kit free of banned plastic items. Note that a plastic wrap or a plastic component in a mixed kit should be reviewed as well.
Details are on disposable cutlery sets, and the comparison of the two routes is in wooden vs plastic cutlery kits.
What the ban does not cover
The SUPD bans listed products; it does not ban plastic food containers in general. PP takeout boxes, PP soup cups, PET fruit boxes and plastic storage containers are not on the list of banned items, although the directive and national laws contain other measures for some single-use items that remain on the market, and some member states add their own rules or fees. Reusable storage containers sold for home use are a different product category altogether. Before an EU launch, the desk lists every single-use item in the program, marks which ones fall under the ban and which ones need a national check, and passes the list to the buyer's counsel.
An illustrative case
An illustrative example, anonymised: a delivery brand selling in two markets ran one cutlery kit, a PP spoon, bamboo chopsticks, a napkin and a toothpick in OPP wrap, for both. When it added an EU country, the desk split the program in two. The non-EU kit stayed as it was after a check of local rules. The EU kit moved to a wooden spoon and fork with the same napkin and toothpick, and the wrap and every other component were reviewed against the ban list. Both kits kept the same carton format so the warehouse handled them the same way, and the food contact documents were requested separately for each kit, because a wooden spoon and a PP spoon need different evidence.
EPS and takeout containers
Expanded polystyrene food containers and cups, the foam clamshells and cups once common in takeout, are banned under the SUPD. The containers in this range are PP, PET, starch and PP blends or paper, so EPS is not part of the offer, but buyers moving an existing program from a foam supplier should check every item for EPS before the first EU shipment.
Food contact rules still apply
Moving from plastic to wood or paper does not remove food contact obligations. Wooden cutlery and paper plates fall under the framework Regulation (EC) 1935/2004, and paper parts sold in the US face state PFAS rules as well. The desk requests the relevant declarations and test reports from the partner plants per project; documents are issued to partner plants or to your brand, not held by Lidwell. The compliance guide lists what to ask for.
Planning an EU takeout program
- List every single-use item in the program, including kit components and wraps.
- Mark the items covered by the SUPD bans and replace them before sampling.
- Choose materials for the remaining items and collect food contact documents.
- Check national rules in each destination country with your counsel.
- Review claims on packaging so that no plastic item is described as plastic-free.
Wooden kits and paper items have their own lead times and minimums; typical reference ranges are on MOQ and lead time, confirmed in writing per program. Send the item list and target countries through the quote form.