California's legislature faced a key deadline on Friday, with several bills needing to pass by then to have a chance of becoming law in the second half of the session ending August 31. Several packaging-related bills, imposing strict regulations on recycled content and compost labeling, have advanced.

Recycled content claims

AB 2253 passed with a vote of 42 to 19 and has been sent to the Senate for consideration. The bill effectively rejects alternative accounting methods such as mass balance in recycled content claims for packaging, requiring written proof that recycled content claims on packaging must be based on the physical recycled content actually used in the production process.

Current California law already requires manufacturers or suppliers to substantiate such environmental marketing claims on plastic food containers, and the bill would extend this requirement to all products.

"AB 2253 helps ensure honesty and accountability in the marketplace, while protecting consumers and supporting genuine sustainability efforts," said Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, who introduced the Consumer Protection from Greenwashing Act.

Californians Against Waste is one of the supporters. "California has the opportunity to lead again, making recycled content claims truly align with consumer expectations," said Nick Lapis, the organization's advocacy director, in a statement.

As of April, opponents included Ameripen, the American Beverage Association, the American Chemistry Council, the Glass Packaging Institute, and the Plastics Industry Association, among others.

Compostable products

AB 1812 passed the Assembly with near-unanimous support, with a vote of 64 to 1, and was sent to the Senate. The bill, introduced by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, would ban the sale of products labeled "compostable" or "home compostable" that are made entirely or partially of plastic starting in 2027.

Packaging industry groups worry that this move could limit solutions at a time when California is trying to implement the extended producer responsibility and source reduction law SB 54 and the organic waste separation mandate SB 1383.

"The core issue with AB 1812 is that it treats all compostable polymers as inherently problematic, rather than distinguishing between applications that cause operational challenges and those that directly advance the state's environmental goals," Californians Against Waste previously stated, hoping the legislation would include targeted exemptions, such as for food waste collection bags, compostable coatings on paper food service ware, coffee capsules, or produce stickers.

The bill has support from municipalities and waste haulers, but as of April, it faced opposition from the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI), Ameripen, the American Chemistry Council, and several packaging companies.

SB 1031 passed with a vote of 29 to 9 and was sent to the Assembly for consideration. The bill aims to strengthen labeling requirements for compostable products to make them more distinguishable from non-compostable products. The bill has been amended to no longer address the issue of "compostable outside of California" labeling.

The bill, introduced by State Senator Catherine Blakespear, also requires further research into the potential health impacts of compostable plastics after degradation and their associated chemical additives.

Californians Against Waste and the California Compost Coalition support the bill, but more than a dozen organizations, including BPI and several compostable packaging manufacturers, are listed as opponents.