German packaging policy

– How unrealistic is it? – An analysis

An Honest Assessment Between Tax Fantasies and Innovation Realities

German packaging policy reveals a fundamental misunderstanding: While municipalities seek to rake in billions via packaging taxes, they systematically ignore affordable and available solutions. A reality check between political dreams and economic truths.

**The Tübingen Tax Fairy Tale: €692,000 for Clean Streets?**

Tübingen celebrates itself as a pioneer of the packaging tax, collecting €692,359 (2022) and over €600,000 (2023) from local businesses. The money goes straight into the municipal budget for public waste disposal – a system that, at first glance, seems logical.

But reality tells a different story: Only 15% less waste in public bins in the first month, while total waste volumes did not decrease. The city collects money, but doesn’t solve the problem.

The message is dire: Municipalities can easily collect from 440 affected businesses at €0.50 per disposable package and €0.20 per disposable cutlery instead of promoting real solutions.

Europe in Tax Frenzy: €172 Million for Innovation – or Just More Bureaucracy?

The EU Circular Bio-based Europe Initiative: Money Yes, Impact Unclear

€172 million are available through Horizon Europe for bio-based packaging innovations. “Circular-by-design fibre-based packaging with improved properties” alone gets €20 million – a theoretical goldmine for startups.

The reality: Bureaucratic monster applications, 18-month application processes, and requirements that only large companies can meet. Small businesses get nothing, despite being the real innovators.

Germany Postpones Its Plastics Tax – Again

Germany was supposed to introduce a national plastics tax in 2025, expected to generate €1.4 billion. Christian Lindner postponed the law yet again: “Problems with data collection and bureaucratic burden.”

Meanwhile, politics is failing, but German consumers are already paying €0.80 per kilogram of non-recycled plastic via the EU mechanism – a hidden multi-billion item directly from the state budget instead of charging those responsible.

**The Innovation Illusion: €417 Million for Packaging Startups – But Where Are the Solutions?**

Europe’s Startup Funding Booms – Problems Remain

H1 2024 was the most successful half-year for European packaging startups with €417 million in funding across 50 deals – a record high.75% of the funding went to compostable/biodegradable and reusable packaging.

The funded “Innovation Heroes”:

• Kelpi: €5.1 million for seaweed packaging

• Bpacks: €1 million for tree bark-based packaging

• Fiberwood: €7.61 million for fiber packaging

The problem: These startups have been developing prototypes for years, but not a single solution is mass-market and affordable for ordinary fast-food businesses.

Cost Reality: Bagasse Isn’t More Expensive

The Truth About Packaging Costs in 2025:

Type of packaging	Cost per unit	Availability
Bagasse packaging	€0.109–0.192	Immediately
Conventional alternatives	€0.107–0.271	Standard
Difference	-18.7% cheaper!

Bagasse is cheaper
Bagasse from sugarcane is not more expensive than conventional packaging – it’s even 18.7% cheaper [own calculation]. The “too expensive” argument from businesses is simply a lie.

Munich, Berlin, Hamburg: The 120 City Rip-Off Is Coming

After the Federal Constitutional Court’s ruling in January 2025, 120 German cities are waiting to copy the Tübingen packaging tax. 24 cities are already actively considering it, including Bamberg, Kiel, Bremerhaven.

The calculation is simple:

• 47 more cities were just waiting for the ruling

• 440 businesses pay in Tübingen (90,000 citizens)

• Hamburg (1.9M citizens) would have 9,240 paying businesses

• At €0.50 per package: millions in income per city

The message: Instead of promoting innovation, municipalities are seeing packaging levies as a goldmine.

The McDonald’s Reusable Disaster: 120 Cents Loss per Cup

Why Germany’s Reusable System Fails

McDonald’s Germany loses €1.20 per reusable cup distributed:

• Deposit: €2.00 per cup
• Return rate: only 40%
• Real loss: €1.20 per cup [own calculation]

Working systems like Vytal/Recup achieve a 98% return rate with only €0.04 loss per container [own calculation]—proof that reusables work, if done right.

The Wrong Message: Taxes Instead of Solutions

Tübingen’s Missed Opportunity

Tübingen invested in 2 full-time tax administration positions, but only €1,500 to support businesses switching to reusables.The ratio is perverse: more money for collecting than for real solutions.

With its €692,000 tax revenues, the city could have:

• Assisted 460 businesses to fully switch to bagasse packaging (€1,500 per business)
• Bought 138,400 reusable containers for an effective pool system
• Developed a local packaging innovation with universities
  Instead: The money disappears into the “waste disposal” budget.

Europe’s Innovation Paradox

€172 million in EU support vanishes in bureaucratic application processes while affordable alternatives like bagasse are already available on the market. Startups receive millions for seaweed packaging, in development since 2018 and still not ready for market.

Solutions Exist – They Are Simply Ignored

What Would Work Immediately:

1. Local support instead of punishment:
   • Tübingen’s €692,000 could have helped 460 local businesses fully convert

   • Subsidize bagasse packaging instead of punishing with taxes

   • Set up local reusable pool systems, as in the Vytal model
2. Realistic EU innovation support:

   • Small instant grants (€5,000–50,000) instead of multi-million bureaucratic monsters

   • Support for market-ready solutions instead of years-long research projects

   • Direct grants for fast food outlets converting to bagasse

3. Honest cost communication:
   • Educate about real packaging costs: bagasse is cheaper than claimed

   • Transparency in reusable system costs: €0.04 loss at 98% return is doable

   • End the “too expensive” excuse from businesses

Francesco del Orbe: Stop the Tax Fantasies!

Dear Guardians of the Earth, municipalities have figured out the system: Packaging tax is the new pot of gold with no real environmental benefit.

The truth: While Tübingen cashes in €692,000 and Munich, Berlin, Hamburg want to follow, 40,000 tons of McDonald’s packaging waste remain per year in Germany. 120 cities smell big money – not big solutions.

I’m positive. I no longer have a CO₂ footprint – I have a POSITIVE EARTHPRINT! But I won’t let myself be fooled any longer that millions in tax revenue will save the planet while affordable solutions are ignored.

There is no technical solution that binds CO₂ as fast as nature – but bagasse from sugarcane is 18.7% cheaper than conventional packaging and 100% compostable. Startups like Kelpi have been developing seaweed packaging with €5.1 million in funding for 7 years – where is the result?

Become a guardian of the Earth – but don’t let yourself be taken for a fool! Municipalities collect, EU bureaucracy wastes €172 million, and fast food chains lie about costs.Solutions are there – they’re just systematically ignored, because taxes are more lucrative than environmental protection.

We are the world – and we’re fed up with tax fantasies while the planet burns and affordable alternatives are on the shelves

Conclusion: Out of Touch Till the Bitter End

Germany’s packaging policy 2025:

• 120 cities want to rake in millions instead of solving problems

• €172 million in EU support lost in bureaucratic monsters

• Bagasse packaging is 18.7% cheaper – but is ignored
• McDonald’s loses €1.20 per reusable cup at 40% return

• Vytal systems work with €0.04 loss at 98% return

• Politics is out of touch, businesses lie about costs, and municipalities discover the goldmine.Real solutions are systematically ignored because taxes are easier than real change.

As guardians of the Earth, we see through the system and act ourselves – for when something must be done and you want to be sure it gets done: do it yourself!

Author: Francesco del Orbe