"The political direction is clear; implementation is now required" (L. Romanese, European Bioplastics)

"The bioplastics strategy recognises our status as a growth market and announces binding targets a year ahead of schedule. This is a fairly positive trend. The political direction is clear; now these concepts and principles need to be implemented", Lorenza Romanese, Secretary General of the European Bioplastics Association, told News Tank on 24/03/2026.

The Secretary General of the trade association representing the interests of bioplastics processors (biocompostable, biodegradable or biosourced plastics; 86 members), answered News Tank's questions during the 2026 Forum organised by Circular Bio-based Europe in Brussels.

"Building a value chain takes time. No Member State would say today that bioplastics are a bad idea, but it requires investment and a long-term vision. The countries on the right track to follow Italy, which is well advanced, are Spain, perhaps France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Ireland. The Nordic countries are moving more towards paper, and the Eastern European countries are lagging behind in terms of collection", she continues.

"To my knowledge, the…