Jan Toonders talks about France’s new focus on repairability and public sector reuse following the recent publication of Decree 2021-254.
France has recently published Decree 2021-254 that sets minimum levels public body organisations must spend on reusable and/or recycled products and recycled content when buying new items, especially where office equipment is concerned.
Public organisations who are purchasing printer and copier consumables must spend at least 20% of their budget on reused and refurbished products the Degree mandates. A move welcomed by Copyclic; one of France’s largest distributors of remanufactured toner and ink cartridges.
Copyclic’s Director, Jan Toonders explained: “We’re delighted that these changes have been implemented. Encouraging the use of remanufactured toner cartridges is not only good for us, but fantastic for the environment and those businesses like ourselves who are at the forefront of sustainability. We try to encourage all of our Partners to switch to remanufactured toners, both for environmental reasons and cost-saving benefits.”
“France is making many world-first moves at the moment, such as their stance on repairability, becoming the first country to make it a legal requirement upon the sale of goods whereby a ‘repairability score’ must accompany any electronic goods that are sold. This month France made yet another interesting move, this time, one which greatly affects the print industry – in particular, remanufactured cartridges,” Toonders added.
If February The Recycler reported that Italy had reconfirmed its mandate that tenders should include 30% remanufactured cartridges and that the 30% requirement will apply to all tenders including direct awards below €40,000 ($48,000).
The European Toner and Inkjet Remanufacturers Association (ETIRA) joined MEPs last December in calling on the EU Commission to grant consumers a ‘right to repair’, by making repairs to printing hardware and consumables more systematic and cost-efficient.
The organisation’s plea follows the European Parliament’s endorsement of Right to Repair, with MEPs voting in favour of boosting sustainability by promoting reuse and repairs, and by tackling practices that shorten the lifespan of products, adopting the resolution on a more sustainable Single Market.
