More global competitiveness, more jobs and sustainable growth: EC adopts a new Circular Economy Package
The European Commission has adopted a new and ambitious Package to support the transition in Europe from a Market economy to a Circular Economy. The transition will be supported financially by ESIF funding, €650 million from Horizon 2020 , €5.5 billion from structural funds for waste management, and by investments in the circular economy at national level. The broad measures for changing the full product lifecycle go beyond a narrow focus on the end-of-life stage and underline the Commission's clear ambition to transform the EU economy and deliver results. Innovative and more efficient ways of producing and consuming should increasingly emerge as a result of the incentives. The proposed actions aimed at boosting global competitiveness, foster sustainable economic growth and generate new jobs, close the loop of product lifecycles. The Package has been prepared by a core project team co-chaired by First Vice-President Frans Timmermans and Vice-President Jyrki Katainen with the close involvement of Commissioners Karmenu Vella and many other Commissioners. Some of the key actions proposed: the reduction of food waste, the development of quality standards for secondary raw materials, measures in the Ecodesign working plan for 2015-2017, a revised Regulation on fertilizers, the adoption of a strategy on plastics in the circular economy and a series of actions on water reuse.