EMPPA Confirms Tahsin Dag as President, Issues Demands for EU Circular Economy Act
Association Day 2025 in Prague: Members Call for EU-Wide Incentives for Fibre-Based Materials and Harmonised EPR Schemes
Berlin/Prague, November 10, 2025 – The European Moulded Pulp Producers Association (EMPPA) elected a new board at its 4th Association Day in Prague and presented a position paper on the EU’s upcoming „Circular Economy Act“ (CEA). The members re-confirmed Tahsin Dag (CEO, PAPACKS) as President of the Board. The association also welcomed new members.
Newly elected to the Board were Marthijn Broeils (Inmaco Solutions B.V.) as Vice President, Michael Marchuk (PAPACKS Czech Republic s.r.o.) as Treasurer, and Richard Hagenauer (KIEFEL GmbH) as Ordinary Board Member. In addition, Serhii Rudkovskyi (SEM ECOPACK LLC) was co-opted onto the Board.
Position Paper Calls for EU Policy Shift
A central focus of the Association Day was the discussion of the new EMPPA position paper, drafted in response to the European Commission’s public consultation on the Circular Economy Act (expected Q3 2026). The association calls for the CEA to be „fully aligned with the EU Bioeconomy Strategy“.
Specifically, EMPPA calls for „targeted policy incentives for the processing and use of fibre-based secondary materials“. Key demands include:
- Harmonised EPR Schemes: The „Implementation of EU-wide, harmonised EPR schemes with eco-modulated fees“ that „reward a product’s environmental performance throughout its entire lifecycle“.
- Recognition of New Raw Materials: Expanding the „EU-Ecolabel“ for products containing „natural fibres from annual plants like hemp“, and recognizing such fibres as „circular input material for paper waste streams“.
- Clear Recyclability: Acknowledging „moulded pulp products coated with natural biopolymers as mono material that qualifies for conventional paper recycling streams“.
- Binding Targets: Applying „minimum recycled content targets“ in public procurement tenders and setting „minimum collection targets for paper and cardboard from municipal waste“.
The association criticises that current investment readiness is hampered by the „softening of EU green legislation“.
Focus on Alternative Fibres and Machinery
Other items on the agenda included a technical presentation by Oktay Koç (Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, ATB Potsdam) on alternative fibres and a factory tour at the member company HIRSCH Porozell GmbH.
The newly elected board and members thanked Franz Jäger, founding member and former Vice President and Treasurer, for his commitment to establishing the association. „Franz and I founded this association. Without him, we would not be where we are today,“ said Tahsin Dag. „However, we are glad that he will continue to support us as a member.“
About the European Moulded Pulp Producers Association (EMPPA)
The European Moulded Pulp Producers Association (EMPPA) e.V. „represents the interests of businesses from the entire moulded fibre value chain“. The association’s mission, based in Berlin, is to „create a level-playing field for circular packaging products made of moulded pulp that is sourced from renewable resources like recycled paper and cardboard and agricultural by-products“.
Press Contact
Alexander Schulz
Public Affairs and Media
European Moulded Pulp Producers Association e.V.
E-Mail: alexander.schulz@emppa.eu
Phone: +49 30 610814610
You want to join as a Member of EMPPA?
Please find our membership application form as PDF for download on the left. Send it together with the SEPA form to the known email address: info@emppa.eu