On 2 December 2015, the European Commission released the first so-called circular economy package, including a Circular Economy Action Plan as well as suggested amendments to waste industry directives. The action plan also included more detailed goals for various waste materials (plastics, food waste, critical raw materials, construction and demolition waste, biomass and biological products).
The circular economy package launched an EU-wide change process, awakening both politicians and businesses to the opportunities of circular economy but also to all the work required to reach the goals.
In April 2018, a new, updated circular economy package was released. It sets goals for recycling and the amount of waste ending up in landfills in the EU. The goal is to recycle at least 55% of all municipal waste by 2025. The goal would then rise to 60% by 2030 and 65% by 2035. The EU-wide recycling goal of packaging waste, in turn, is 65% by 2025 and 60% by 2030. There are separate goals for specific materials.