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Changes to Shipping to European Countries
As of August 12, 2026, key provisions of the new European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) have taken effect. This regulation introduces new requirements for companies that place packaging or packaged goods on the market within the European Union.
Unfortunately, these regulations also affect which European countries we can ship to using “Natürlich verpacken.”
Why We Are Discontinuing Shipping to Some EU Countries
As a German online retailer, we ship our products directly to customers in various European countries. Under the new PPWR regulations, this means we may also be considered a manufacturer in the respective destination country for the purposes of extended producer responsibility.
For companies that do not have their own branch in another EU member state, this can mean, among other things:
Registration in the respective national manufacturer registry,
Compliance with country-specific reporting and EPR obligations,
Participation in national take-back and disposal systems, and
appointment of an authorized representative for extended producer responsibility who is established in the respective Member State.
In particular, the requirement to appoint a separate authorized representative for each country of distribution results in additional administrative burdens and ongoing costs.
Not economically viable for small shipment volumes
Natürlich verpacken has supplied customers in numerous European countries in recent years. In many of these countries, however, we receive only occasional individual orders.
The costs and administrative burden associated with registration, reporting, and appointing a national authorized representative arise largely regardless of whether we ship only a few or a large number of orders per year in a given country.
For low shipment volumes, this effort is therefore not economically justifiable in relation to our revenue.
We have therefore decided to suspend shipping to several EU member states for the time being.
We will continue to ship to these countries
Orders via our online store are still possible for the following delivery countries:
Germany
Austria
France
Netherlands
Switzerland
United Kingdom
For the remaining European countries, shipping via our online store is no longer available for the time being.
We have had national authorized representatives in place for Austria and France for quite some time. Since these two countries are among our top-performing markets outside Germany within the EU, we will continue to ship to them even under the new PPWR requirements.
In the Netherlands, we can also continue to offer shipping due to the regulations in effect there for companies with comparatively small packaging volumes.
Switzerland and the United Kingdom are not part of the European Union. Therefore, the PPWR does not apply directly there. Deliveries to these countries are subject to their respective national regulations.
We regret this restriction
We are aware that this decision is particularly frustrating for our existing customers in Belgium, Italy, Ireland, and other European countries.
We, too, deeply regret this restriction. Our goal has always been to make our product range accessible to as many commercial and private customers in Europe as possible.
However, the new requirements pose significant practical challenges, particularly for small and medium-sized online retailers, when they ship only small quantities to individual EU member states.
A change to the European regulation is already planned
It has now also been recognized at the European level that the requirement to appoint national representatives can significantly hinder cross-border trade within the EU.
The European Commission has therefore already proposed temporarily suspending this requirement for companies based in the EU. However, the necessary European legislative process has not yet been completed.
The currently applicable regulations therefore remain in effect for the time being.
We are monitoring further developments
We are closely monitoring further developments regarding the PPWR and, in particular, the planned changes to the regulations governing authorized representatives.
Should the requirement for companies based within the EU actually be lifted or suspended, and should shipping once again become possible at a reasonable cost as a result, we will resume deliveries to the countries currently excluded.
We therefore hope to be able to deliver our products to significantly more European countries again in the future.
Thank you for your understanding.