A packaging tax will be introduced in Potsdam on October 1st. Bakeries, restaurants, and snack bars will be required to pay the tax. The city aims to reduce waste through this tax and a reusable packaging system. For businesses, this is not only a "bureaucratic nightmare," but they also fear a drop in revenue. (Photo: © svetilo/123RF.com)
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August 2026
50 cents more for a coffee to go: Why bakers in particular are suffering under the packaging tax, which is being hotly debated in more and more municipalities. The tax starts in Potsdam on October 1st.
From October 1, 2026, a fee will be charged Potsdam Brandenburg has become the first city in the state to introduce a packaging tax. Bakeries, ice cream parlors, kebab shops, restaurants, and cafes will have to pay a tax on single-use packaging. For coffee cups, food containers, and pizza boxes, the tax is 50 cents, and for single-use cutlery, it's 20 cents per piece. Value-added tax (VAT) will be added to this. The city aims to reduce waste with the new packaging tax. A city-wide reusable packaging system is planned.
The one-way tax was originally scheduled to take effect in Potsdam on July 1st. However, the state capital postponed the start date by three months to give businesses more time to adapt their operations following widespread protests from the business community. Other municipalities are watching the developments in Potsdam with great interest.
Meanwhile, they Bakery entrepreneurs like Maximilian Schöppner from the Plentz Bakery & Confectionery From Oberkrämer in Brandenburg, we are currently having many talks with local politicians to raise awareness about the consequences for small and medium-sized businesses and to prevent further packaging taxes in the state of Brandenburg. The family business currently operates ten branches, of which nine in the district of Oberhavel and one in Berlin-Spandau.
The one-way tax only exists in a few cities, such as... Tübingen, Konstanz and Freiburg im BreisgauSeveral other municipalities are seriously considering the tax. The main argument is the prevention of mountains of trash, such as piles of pizza boxes left behind in parks.
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Operations management
The excise tax also brings a lot of money into the coffers of municipalities. Potsdam expects revenues of over one million euros per year. Many cities, meanwhile, have abandoned the plan or – like Cologne, for example – put it on hold due to strong protests from regional businesses.
Going his own way BayernThe introduction of such an additional levy has been fundamentally prohibited here since the beginning of the year. This is a model that business associations and chambers of commerce would like to see implemented in other countries as well. Saxon Crafts Day In mid-July, it called on the state government to follow Bavaria's example. ➡️ Read more here
The Potsdam Chamber of Crafts Other regional business and industry associations are sharply criticizing the packaging tax. Despite their protests, the city council voted in favor. "Food businesses – bakeries, butchers, confectioners – already bear a considerable tax burden," they say. Ralph Bührig, Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Skilled Crafts.
Higher prices in the takeaway sector would, based on experience, directly impact demand. "Our businesses already pay for the disposal of packaging subject to system participation requirements and provide customers with the legally mandated reusable alternatives. An additional municipal packaging tax would place a double burden on our businesses and create even more bureaucracy – without any discernible environmental benefit."
Furthermore, Potsdam's city center is already suffering from vacancies and declining attractiveness. Another levy would be particularly damaging. Bührig emphasizes: "The trades need relief and practical solutions, not new obstacles."
Information for Potsdam businesses and consumers👉🏻 Information from the state capital Potsdam about the Packaging tax
For many bakeries, coffee and snacks are important revenue drivers. "If customers suddenly forgo their coffee or snack, it directly impacts the economic foundation of the businesses," he says. Roland Ermer, President of the Central Association of the Bakery TradeIn the end, exactly the money that is needed for investments, higher wages, or training is lacking.
The association recently addressed an open letter to the German Association of Towns and Municipalities, demanding that municipal packaging taxes be suspended immediately where they have already been introduced and that further introductions be avoided. ➡️ Read more here
Bakers are talking about an expensive one. Bureaucratic monster, which also distorts competition. Because if customers have to pay 50 cents more for their coffee to go or their warm quiche at the bakery, they would go to the discount store or the gas station even more often than they already do, he says. Maximilian Schöppner"Because yogurt in a plastic cup or latte macchiato from the refrigerated section isn't taxed. That's incomprehensible." The distinction isn't entirely straightforward anyway. Disposable packaging from delivery services For example, according to the information in a Flyer of the state capital not the taxation.
To this day, it remains unclear how the tax is to be collected. Many questions remain unanswered. The city states that businesses must keep documentation on goods purchases and sales, such as invoices, delivery notes, or cash register data. "From my perspective, this is a complete disaster on many levels," emphasizes Schöppner, because ultimately, bakers, restaurants, and snack bars are supposed to collect this hidden tax for the municipality. "We will communicate this to our customers exactly as it is." But in the end, this could give customers a false impression of the baking trade. "We bakers, in particular, are often at the forefront when it comes to sustainability and innovative waste reduction."
When is the tax due? The tax liability arises the moment the food or beverages are sold. The tax period is always the Calendar quarterThe tax return must be submitted to the city of Potsdam no later than the 15th day after the end of the quarter. An official form must be used for this purpose. The payment will then be determined by tax assessment notice and is due within one month of notification. The city is planning a Funding program "for investments to switch to reusable products", It says so. Source: Potsdam.de
As master craftsman of Bakers' and Confectioners' Guild of Oberhavel and board member of the State Guild Association Berlin-Brandenburg Maximilian Schöppner is committed to ensuring that Potsdam's packaging tax does not set a precedent for the rest of the state. A statewide ban on the packaging tax is unlikely to gain a majority in the Brandenburg state government. The municipalities should decide independently based on their local self-government, it is argued.
Maximilian Schöppner hopes for a change of heart from politicians. "The state and local authorities must keep in mind that small and medium-sized businesses are important for local supply. And that the short supply chains for grain that is produced, milled, and baked in Germany are also very sustainable."
Especially in uncertain times, it is important to preserve these small-scale regional structures. "Therefore, I believe that in the medium and long term it is wise not to impose additional burdens on entrepreneurs." Schöppner recommends that his colleagues hold many discussions in the towns and municipalities and, for example, secure the right to speak in the city council meetings "in order to inform and educate." Argumentation templates for the baking trade are available, for example, from the Central Association.
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