Deco — Consumer Protection, the environmental association Zero, the María Granel store and Zero Waste Lab launch today, coinciding with World Recharging Day, the “Manifesto for the flexibility of bulk”, two days after presenting a legislative proposal to the Government , with a set of measures to turn this practice into a norm.
“What we intend with this manifesto and with the legislative proposal that we have already sent to the Government and the parliamentary groups is to make wholesale sales more flexible and effective. Today, various foods such as rice, pasta and flour, even sugar, olive oil and honey, still prevail, which cannot be sold wholesale to the consumer,” Deco jurist Susana Correia told Lusa. .
Also in sectors such as cosmetics and cleaning products there is still “little innovation and flexibility”, which prevents consumers from having access to options that the signatories of the manifesto defend as more “sustainable, ecological and economical”.
The goal is that next year wholesale sales will be the norm, at least in all stores of more than 1,000 square meters (m2).
For this to happen, it is proposed to create a commission in charge of verifying the legislation of the sector and whether products must maintain restrictions regarding their form of marketing.
According to Deco, this commission must be coordinated by the General Directorate of Consumer Affairs (DGC) and made up of representatives of the Economic and Food Safety Authority (ASAE), the General Directorate of Economic Activities (DGAE), the General Directorate of Food and Veterinary Medicine (DGAV), as well as elements from the areas of health, environment, distribution, retail and packaging.
Deco, Zero, María Granel and Zero Waste Lab maintain that, 90 days after the entry into force of the legislative proposal, this technical committee must present the conclusions of its work.
“The aim is to include the widest possible range of products, but we have to maintain a high level of consumer protection. We want to raise awareness about these issues that, at this moment, do not make sense. We want the legislation to be reviewed,” highlighted the jurist.
Susana Correia pointed out that many consumers are still not aware of the resources necessary to produce new packaging, hence the need for bulk to be an example in this matter, with reusable alternatives, such as shared packaging banks.
On the part of the Government, the signatories of the manifesto hope that the legislative proposal will be approved, but they also defend the need to develop more awareness campaigns among consumers and economic operators.
Among the proposals included in the document is the creation of an electronic platform that brings together businesses that have already adopted wholesale sales.
Source: Observadora
