At KLM, we recycle catering waste from our European flights by separating it into 14 different waste streams, ready to be recycled. This is not the case for catering waste that originates outside of Europe, however: EU legislation enacted more than a decade ago obliges us to incinerate this waste, preventing us from recycling the bulk of our catering waste.

We are not alone in facing this issue: dozens of other airlines, caterers, waste management companies and airports across Europe are struggling with the same problem. Current EU legislation makes it impossible to move to a fully circular economy in Europe. We - the undersigned - have joined forces in calling on EU policymakers to address this problem.