The "Bottle-to-Bottle Cross-Sector Consensus Forum" brought together the Environmental Protection Administration's Resource Circulation Agency, the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Food and Drug Administration, and four participating organizations to share perspectives on "rPET: Taiwan's Current Landscape and Practices." Through retail implementation, advocacy strategies, and cross-sector collaboration, the forum aimed to accelerate real-world applications of rPET in everyday consumer products, building social consensus and a roadmap for the development of circular packaging.
Taiwan's PET bottle recycling rate stands at an impressive 95%, placing it among the global leaders. Combined with mature recycling technologies for recycled PET (rPET), Taiwan is well-positioned for mass production of food-grade recycled packaging. To drive the beverage industry toward a faster circular transition, the "Bottle to Bottle" Task Force — co-founded by the Nature Conservation and Environmental Information Foundation and Sān Rén Héng Hǎo — officially launched on the eve of World Environment Day. It marks Taiwan's first civil society task force dedicated to promoting circular food packaging. The group simultaneously released the Taiwan Bottle-to-Bottle Annual Working Report, setting a concrete target: to push Taiwan's beverage producers to achieve 30% recycled plastic content in PET bottles by 2030, fulfilling the social mission of "reducing virgin plastic and realizing circular recycling."
The EU's PPWR Legislation: Global Food Packaging Transitions from Voluntary Goals to Mandatory Compliance
As global plastic pollution continues to worsen, the European Union confirmed and published the draft text of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) in February 2025. The new rules stipulate that PET bottles must contain at least 25% rPET starting in 2025, rising to 30% by 2030 and further to 65% by 2040 — signaling that the EU has enshrined rPET use as a long-term statutory requirement. Beyond PET bottles, other single-use plastic packaging such as trays and bags will also fall under the regulations, officially ushering in a new era of mandatory compliance for food-grade recycled packaging.
In fact, globally renowned mineral water brands such as evian, FIJI Water, and Volvic, as well as beverage and food giants including Coca-Cola, Nestlé, PepsiCo, and Japan's Suntory Group, began committing to rPET usage targets as far back as 2018 [Note], demonstrating that the shift from virgin plastic to circular recycling requires years of preparation. If Taiwan is to align with international trends and realize a circular economy centered on plastic and waste reduction, it must accelerate the production transition for food and beverage packaging.
Taiwan's First Civil Society Task Force for Food Packaging Circularity Launches — 30 Organizations and KOLs Join the Cause
The Bottle-to-Bottle project garnered over 300 individual signatures and support from 30 organizations and KOLs. Representatives from diverse sectors attended together, demonstrating the determination of Taiwan's civil society to unite across sectors and drive the transition toward plastic reduction.
In response to the global trend of plastic reduction, the "Bottle to Bottle" Task Force — co-founded by the Nature Conservation and Environmental Information Foundation and Sān Rén Héng Hǎo — officially launched on the eve of World Environment Day, becoming Taiwan's first civil society advocacy platform dedicated to promoting circular food packaging and advancing the 2030 plastic reduction goal. Project lead Chen Ruibin stated: "The Bottle-to-Bottle Task Force is committed to pushing Taiwan's beverage producers to achieve 30% recycled plastic content in PET bottles by 2030," with the hope that the industry will take concrete action to reduce environmental pollution and ecological harm.
No sooner had the "Bottle to Bottle" project gone live than it attracted over 300 individual signatures and advocacy support from 30 organizations and KOLs. Participants came from a wide cross-section of society, including celebrity KOLs (Wu Yipei, Lin Yi, Wang Xuanru), civil society groups (Citizen of the Earth Foundation, RE-THINK, 5% Design Action｜Earth Solutions, Accelerate Plastic Reduction, Hai Yong Studio, Taiwan Environmental Protection Union), expert institutions (KPMG, Circular Taiwan Foundation, CRIF, YouLaDi Sustainability, Leadership Management Consulting, National Taichung University of Education College of Management Social Enterprise Center, Ching Yun University of Science and Technology Ocean Sustainability Environmental Education Studio), industry and hospitality channels (Carrefour, Taichung Port Hotel, Da Feng Environmental Protection, Mùlì mooni, Badou Friendly Restaurant), social enterprises and startups (Greenvines, Jìng Dú Wǔ Láng, Mǐ Ài Lín Studio, BlueTrend, Fanlitong, Packageplus, Slash Studio), and B Corporations (Taiwan Diving, Environment Friendly Seed). Representatives gathered at a venue hosted by the Ministry of Environment for the "Bottle-to-Bottle Cross-Sector Consensus Forum," showcasing the resolve of Taiwan's civil society to work across boundaries and champion the plastic-reduction transition.
Minister Peng Qi-ming stated in his opening remarks: "Taiwan's PET bottle recycling rate has reached 95%, providing favorable conditions for advancing food-grade circular packaging. Through collaboration between cross-ministerial agencies and civil society organizations, we hope to advance the 'Bottle-to-Bottle' initiative and create a new paradigm for sustainable action."
Minister Peng Qi-ming remarked in his address: "Taiwan's PET bottle recycling rate has reached 95%, providing favorable conditions for advancing food-grade circular packaging. Through collaboration between cross-ministerial agencies and civil society organizations, we hope to advance the 'Bottle-to-Bottle' initiative and create a new paradigm for sustainable action that delivers both environmental and economic benefits through a circular economy. The Ministry of Environment will also strengthen institutional support and clarify the division of responsibilities through relevant regulatory amendments, enabling the 'Bottle-to-Bottle' initiative to be collectively implemented across all sectors."
The "Bottle-to-Bottle Cross-Sector Consensus Forum" was divided into two panel discussions. Panel One, rPET: Taiwan's Current Landscape, featured Deputy Director-General Xu Zhilun of the Ministry of Environment's Resource Circulation Agency, Senior Technical Specialist Zhou Peiru of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Food and Drug Administration, and Peng Guizhi, Board Chair of the Homemakers United Foundation Consumer Cooperative. The panelists examined the current state of and challenges to food-grade rPET promotion in Taiwan from the perspectives of policy-making, food-grade safety standards, and brand application. Panel Two, Accelerating rPET in Practice, brought together Su Xiaozhen, Chief Sustainability Officer of Carrefour Taiwan, Chen Huilin, Executive Director of the Circular Taiwan Foundation, and Xie Helin, Secretary-General of the Taiwan Watch Institute, to discuss how retail implementation, advocacy strategies, and cross-sector collaboration can accelerate the real-world adoption of rPET in everyday consumer products — building social consensus and a clear pathway for circular packaging development.
Taiwan Bottle-to-Bottle Annual Working Report Released — Two Milestones and Three Key Action Plans Revealed
The Taiwan Bottle-to-Bottle initiative has already achieved two key milestones this year. First, the Homemakers United Foundation Consumer Cooperative launched Taiwan's first red oolong tea beverage to reach the 30% rPET threshold, pioneering a demonstration of food-grade recycled plastic's potential in the tea beverage market. Second, packaging manufacturer Honquan International Group made a voluntary commitment to progressively increase the rPET content in bottles produced for its European and American brands between 2024 and 2028, further illustrating that Taiwan has the opportunity to establish a food-grade circular packaging industrial system in Asia.
In 2023, Taiwan completed its regulatory framework for food-grade rPET, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare's announcement of approved food-grade rPET raw material suppliers benchmarked against EU and US food contact material safety standards, as well as the Ministry of Environment's publication of recycling and reuse management rules. Bottle-to-Bottle co-project lead Liu Xiaorong stated: "Social consensus in civil society requires sustained effort. The Taiwan Bottle-to-Bottle Annual Working Report puts forward three key actions: hosting 10 'Circular Gatherings' by the end of 2025, launching a seed-teacher recruitment and touring education program in Q3, and encouraging greater civic participation in the 'Bottle-to-Bottle' petition campaign." These steps aim to lay a practical foundation for circular recycling.
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