On 9 September 2025, the European Parliament adopted a historic reform of the European Waste Framework Directive, introducing binding targets for food waste and new obligations for textile producers.
Reducing food waste across Europe
For the first time, EU Member States are legally required to reduce food waste by a specific amount. By the end of 2030, countries must reduce waste by 10% in food processing and manufacturing and by 30% per capita in retail, hotels, restaurants and households, compared to average levels in 2021-2023. Given that Europeans currently waste around 132 kg of food per person per year, the impact of these measures could be considerable. In order to prevent edible food from ending up in landfills, the law also requires governments to ensure that supermarkets, restaurants and other large operators make surplus food available for donation rather than disposal.
Tackling the fast fashion footprint
The reform also addresses the growing textile waste crisis in Europe. Approximately 12.6 million tonnes of textiles are discarded each year in the EU, including 5.2 million tonnes of clothing and footwear. To remedy this, the law introduces extended producer responsibility (EPR). From now on, any company selling textiles on the European market, whether it is an established fashion house, an online retailer, or a foreign brand selling in Europe, must bear the costs of collecting, sorting and recycling the textiles it sells. The rules apply to clothing, footwear, accessories, blankets, bed linen and curtains, with countries having the option to extend them to other items such as mattresses. It is important to note that these programmes are designed to reflect environmental costs. This could result in higher fees for fast fashion companies whose cheap, short-lived products generate huge amounts of waste, while producers who invest in more sustainable, repairable and recyclable models could benefit from reduced contributions. Member States now have 20 months to transpose the directive into national law and 30 months to set up their EPR programmes for textiles. Micro-enterprises will be given an additional year to comply with the directive.
A turning point with limits
The environmental stakes are considerable. According to the European Parliament, food waste in the EU amounts to around 60 million tonnes per year, which leads to a waste of water, land, energy and fertilisers, and releases greenhouse gases during decomposition. Furthermore, the production and disposal of textiles consume enormous resources and release pollutants, including microplastics, into the environment. The new law is part of the broader EU strategy for sustainable and circular textiles, which sets out measures to make products more sustainable, repairable and recyclable. However, environmental groups such as Zero Waste Europe argue that the legislation does not go far enough, especially since the EU has opted for a 30% food waste reduction target instead of aligning itself with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, which aims to halve global food waste by 2030. They also point out that giving Member States more than two years to set up textile responsibility systems delays urgent action at a time when the fashion industry continues to ramp up production. Furthermore, as the directive does not set binding EU-wide targets for textile collection and recycling, results may vary considerably depending on the level of ambition of each country.
Looking ahead
By obliging governments to reduce food waste and making textile manufacturers pay for the life cycle of their products, the EU is sending a strong message, the linear ‘extract, manufacture, dispose’ model is no longer acceptable. Yet, the effectiveness of this reform will depend on how each Member State translates the directive into national measures and on the willingness of producers to fully assume their role in a more circular economy.