France in 2020 passed a landmark law called the Loi relative à la lutte contre le gaspillage et à l'économie circulaire (law on the anti-waste and toward a circular economy).
The law has five primary goals: to move away from single-use plastics; better inform customers about environmental impacts; decrease waste; act against programmed obsolescence; and generally to produce better, longer-lasting, environmentally-friendly items.
It started off with a five-year "3R" decree outlining targets for the reduction, reuse and recycling of single-use plastic packaging for the period running from 2021-2025, with the radical goal of zero plastic usage by 2040.
The legislation's many measures are being progressively phased in on a year-to-year basis.
What's new?
In 2026, France will ban the sale of cosmetic products that contain microplastics - such as shampoos, hair colouring products, shower gels and makeup removers.
In 2027, this is set to be extended to detergents.
Most of the law is now already in place - here's a look at the parts that have already come into effect;
2025
At the start of 2025, rules banning plastic wrapping of newspapers and magazines also came into effect, joining a previous rule about advertising materials from 2023.
Meanwhile, paediatric, obstetric, maternity wards, and perinatal centres stopped using plastic containers for reheating or cooking baby food, in an effort to "prevent exposure to endocrine disruptors."
2024
In 2024, France banned the sale of medical devices containing microplastics (mostly disposable medical devices such as syringes).
The country also technically introduced 'compost obligatoire' (compulsory composting). However, the phrase is something of a misnomer - there is no requirement for households to compost, or to separate their biowaste from other refuse – the obligation is on local authorities to offer easy-to-use means by which households can compost, if they want to.
In 2024, France also extended the products eligible for the 'repair bonus' (Bonus réparation) to electronics, and it added more elements to the 'reparability index' to show the item's sustainability.
2023
At the start of 2023, fast-food restaurants such as McDonald's were prohibited from using disposable tableware and cups for meals served on site. This rule required any restaurant with more than 20 seats, which also includes work canteens and bakery chains, to provide reusable and washable tableware for customers dining in.
Textile and clothing stores were required to inform shoppers of where the material was produced and manufactured.
France also made recycling easier in 2023, clarifying that all paper, plastic, metal and cardboard objects could now go in the yellow recycling bins across the country.
After being pushed back, the law finally made it so paper receipts are no longer automatically printed, but they can still be requested by the customer.
The government also introduced a 'clothes and shoes repair bonus' that allows people to get financial assistance ranging from €7 to €25, in a scheme similar to the electrical items repair bonus.
READ MORE: How France's clothes and shoes repair bonus works
And supermarkets were meant to be required to display fruits and vegetables en vrac (without plastic packaging), though there are some exceptions.
2022
In 2022, establishments open to the public - like railway stations, libraries, schools, and hospitals - were required to provide a water fountain. As for bars and restaurants, they were required to indicate on their menus or somewhere visible to the public that free drinking water was available.
Additionally, plastic tea bags, plastic packaging for fruit and vegetables weighing less than 1.5 kg and plastic toys distributed free of charge in fast-food restaurants were all banned in France. However, there were some exceptions to this.
Single-use plastics were also entirely banned for government-organised events and within state workspaces.
In 2022, the country also banned the destruction of unsold items like electronics and hygiene products, after having already banned destroying unsold food products in 2016.
2021
France made it possible for customers to bring their own reusable containers to restaurants for takeaway.
The country also banned new single-use plastic products. This includes straws, stirrers, lids for takeaway cups, expanded polystyrene boxes (such as kebab boxes), steak sticks, balloon rods, plastic confetti and all objects made of oxodegradable plastic.
The law also made it so that drinks served in a reusable cup brought by the customer must be sold at a cheaper price.
The year 2021 also saw the government ban the free distribution of plastic bottles in businesses, coupled with an investment in water fountains.
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