Retail
Retail is the second largest EU service sector after financial services, generating 4.5% of the value added in the EU economy and providing 8.6% of all jobs in the EU. EU households spend up to one-third of their budgets in retail shops. The sector is changing rapidly with the development of e-commerce and multi-channel retailing and has the potential to perform better. Fewer restrictions in retail mean higher productivity in manufacturing. A more efficient retail sector can offer consumers lower prices which creates more demand and steers producers towards more innovative goods. This is why the Commission is helping Member States and operators to overcome the current challenges by addressing an accumulation of restrictions in the retail sector.
New EU rules to reduce, reuse and recycle packaging was one of the most lobbied legislative initiatives in recent years. On reaching agreement within the European Parliament in April 2024, Rapporteur Frédérique Ries (Renew, BE) said: “For the first time in an environmental law, the EU is setting targets to reduce packaging, regardless of the material used. The new rules foster innovation and include exemptions for micro-enterprises. The ban on forever chemicals in food packaging is a great victory for the health of European consumers. We now call on all industrial sectors, EU countries and consumers to play their part in the fight against excess packaging.”