June 19th, 2009 - New rules eliminating unhealthy additives in food packaging came into effect in China on June 1st, 2009. Back in 2007, the Chinese government circulated directions that plastic packaging "must not endanger health, it must be easy to recycle" and advised that various types of plastic would soon be banned.

In 2007, the State Council issued that “Method for Administration of Recycling Packaging Materials” to all branches of government. According to packwebasia it is like a road-map, a loose directive with each department responsible for introducing and following new rules under their control.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) has responded with this legislation. In September 2008, the "Hygienic Standard for Uses of Additives in Food Containers and Packaging Materials (GB 9685-2008)" was passed by the MOH as an addition to the People's Republic of China Food Sanitation Law. Industry had nine months to review the approved substances list and propose changes. That law has now come into effect and of the 222 pages, only 4 are introduction, the rest being a huge appendix of approved additives, formulae and calculations.

If an additive is not included in the Appendix of permitted substances, it is now considered banned from use by the plastic food packaging sector in China.

China’s "Method for Administration of Recycling Packaging Materials" directive will continue to have impacts on the entire packaging industry. According to packaging reporter Stuart Hoggard, within a few years China is going to ban packaging that is neither recyclable or biodegradable, require packages to be lightweight, forbid "excessive packaging", and set up post-consumer Eco Zones to sort, classify, reprocess, recover and recycle packaging materials. For starters, PVC will be forbidden, polystyrene restricted, and the use of heavy metals in dyes and inks banned as well. Transport and storage of recyclable and recycled materials is to be regulated, and incentive money put into R&D of new materials, processes, and technologies.

Furthermore, the 2007 document calls for the creation of a Recycled Material Trading system to be set up under market conditions. This trading floor would essentially be a commodity exchange for recyclables and given the vast amount of material that flows through China, the impact could be truly global.

Basically, "when passed into law ALL PACKAGING must be Recoverable, Reusable, Recyclable or Compostable no other packaging will be acceptable."

It might not be far off that companies producing in China for global markets would be banned under upcoming laws from selling those same products in China.