Product

Plastic disposables and food packaging from Türkiye: what to specify

Lotvela · Gaziantep · Checked 29 October 2026

Türkiye exported $412.5 million of plastic tableware and kitchenware (HS 3924.10) and $1,372.9 million of plastic packing articles such as boxes, cups, bottles and closures (HS 3923) in 2025. Gaziantep's plastics exports reached $901.4 million in 2025 and grew 24.7% in the first half of 2026, and the province is second only to Istanbul in plastic packaging jobs. The one thing to get right is the match between product and market: the EU has banned plastic plates, cutlery, straws, stirrers and polystyrene food and drink containers since 3 July 2021, the UAE's rules on plastic cups, plates and cutlery apply from 1 January 2026, and every market expects food-contact documents.

Türkiye and Gaziantep in numbers

Türkiye figures are customs data reported to the UN. Gaziantep figures come from the south-eastern exporters' associations (GAİB) and from TİM, which counts exports by the exporter's head office. Chapter 39 covers all plastics, including film, sacks and raw material; no public source splits Gaziantep's plastics exports by product.

HS 3924.10 also covers reusable kitchenware, and HS 3923 includes sacks and bags, so neither line measures disposables alone. The firm counts include only firms that file an industrial capacity report. For the city's other industries, see what Gaziantep makes; for sacks and big bags, see PP woven bags and FIBC.

Large producers

Türkiye's largest plastic packaging producers on the 2025 national rankings include these four; two of them produce in Gaziantep:

No producer whose main products are disposable cups, plates, cutlery or paper cups appears by name on TİM's 2025 top 1,000 or on the 2025 İSO 500 and second 500. The lists are incomplete: on TİM's list some exporters withheld their names or did not take part, and some firms on the İSO lists did not disclose theirs. Three plastics firms registered with the Gaziantep Chamber of Industry appear on the 2025 İSO 500; TOBB counts 84 plastic packaging firms in the province. The rankings say little about who makes disposables, so each candidate plant has to be checked.

Product types and what to specify

• Cups. Drinking and dessert cups in PP, PS or PET, made by thermoforming from sheet or by injection moulding. State volume to the brim and to a fill line, rim diameter, height, weight per cup and the lid that must fit.
• Plates, bowls and cutlery. Thermoformed or injection-moulded PP or PS. Check the destination rules below before you specify these in plastic.
• Containers and lids. Deli containers, sauce cups, hinged clamshells, salad and dessert boxes. State the temperature range (hot fill, microwave, freezer), leak tightness, tamper evidence and stacking.
• PET preforms and closures. Preform weight, neck finish and thread standard, colour and transparency, and the bottle and drink they are for (water, carbonated, hot fill, oil). Closures: neck finish, liner, tamper band, and tethering for the EU (see below).
• Paper cups and containers. Board grammage, single or double wall, inner coating (PE, PLA or water-based), and lid material. A plastic coating changes how EU, UK and UAE rules treat the cup.
• Material. Virgin or recycled resin, with the share and source of recycled content (for example rPET), and any bio-based or compostable claim with its evidence.
• Wall thickness and weight. Give target weight per piece with a tolerance, or minimum wall thickness, and a test for rigidity or top load if the cup will be sealed or stacked.
• Printing. Plain or printed, the printing or labelling method, number of colours, artwork files, and the markings the market requires.

Capacity, minimum order quantity, lead time and price are confirmed per producer and per order. We do not quote them.

Quality, and how to check a producer

• Declaration of compliance. For plastic food-contact articles sold in the EU, Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 requires a written declaration of compliance, backed by supporting documents that must be shown to authorities on request. Ask for it per article, naming the resin grades and the conditions of use it covers.
• Migration tests. The EU overall migration limit is 10 mg per dm² of contact surface or 60 mg per kg of food; listed substances also have specific migration limits. Ask for test reports that match your food and temperature of use (hot drinks, microwave, freezer), from a laboratory with the test in its accreditation scope. In Türkiye, TÜRKAK accredits testing laboratories.
• Good manufacturing practice. EU food-contact makers must work under Regulation (EC) No 2023/2006 on good manufacturing practice. Ask how the plant controls resin lots, masterbatch and inks.
• Recycled plastic. Food-contact recycled plastic sold in the EU must meet Regulation (EU) 2022/1616. The Commission lists mechanical PET recycling and recycling from a closed and controlled chain as suitable technologies. Ask for the recycler's registration numbers and check them in the EU register.
• PFAS. For paper cups and containers sold in the EU, ask for evidence against the PFAS limits in force since 12 August 2026 (see below).
• Site visit. Look at the machines and moulds that will run your item (and who owns the moulds), hygiene in the forming and packing halls, foreign-body controls, retained samples and carton lot labels. Visit the plant that will run your order.

Our guide to checking a Turkish factory covers registers, documents and the visit in more detail.

Rules by market

European Union

• Single-Use Plastics Directive. Directive (EU) 2019/904 has banned these single-use plastic products from the EU market since 3 July 2021: cutlery (forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks), plates, straws, beverage stirrers, cotton bud sticks, balloon sticks, and food containers, beverage containers and cups made of expanded polystyrene (EPS), including their lids. EU buyers therefore cannot import these items in plastic.
• What counts as plastic. The Directive covers products made "wholly or partly from plastic". The Commission's 2021 guidelines treat paper or board products with a plastic coating or lining as partly plastic, so plastic-lined paper plates are banned like plastic ones, and they include bio-based and biodegradable plastics such as PLA. Uncoated paper and wood items are outside the Directive. The Commission updated these guidelines on 8 September 2026 (C/2026/4813); check the current text before you order.
• Cups. Plastic cups, and paper cups with a plastic lining, may still be sold. Since 3 July 2021 they must carry the harmonised marking set by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2151, and member states must reduce consumption of cups and of food containers for immediate consumption. Cups, food containers and drink containers up to three litres also fall under extended producer responsibility, which your EU customer pays for.
• Caps and bottles. Since 3 July 2024, caps and lids of plastic drink containers up to three litres must stay attached to the container. PET drink bottles must contain 25% recycled plastic on average from 2025, and all plastic drink bottles 30% from 2030.
• Packaging Regulation. Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (PPWR) has applied since 12 August 2026. From that date, food-contact packaging may not contain PFAS at or above 25 ppb for any single PFAS, 250 ppb for the sum of PFAS, or 50 ppm for all PFAS including polymeric PFAS. There is no sell-off period: packaging placed on the market after that date must comply, and for imports the date that counts is release for free circulation. The Commission says a cup sold empty to consumers is not packaging, but a cup filled at the point of sale is "service packaging". For service packaging the manufacturer is normally the cup maker, unless the cup carries the user's name or trademark; then the user is the manufacturer. The manufacturer draws up the EU declaration of conformity, so agree with your producer and importer who prepares it and the technical documentation.
• Coming dates under the PPWR. Harmonised sorting labels from 2028. From 1 January 2030, single-use plastic packaging for food and drink filled and consumed on the premises of hotels, restaurants and cafés is banned (Annex V, point 3), and the Commission counts paper-based packaging with 5% or more plastic as plastic for this ban. Extruded polystyrene joins the EPS ban from 1 January 2030. Minimum recycled content and design-for-recycling rules also start from 2030. Food-contact plastic packaging is exempt from recycled content where it would breach food-safety rules, for example where Regulation (EU) 2022/1616 lists no suitable recycling technology for the polymer.
• Food contact. Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 is the framework, Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 sets the list of permitted substances and migration limits for plastics, and Regulation (EU) 2024/3190 restricts bisphenol A and other bisphenols, with transitional periods.

United Kingdom

• England. Since 1 October 2023, the Environmental Protection (Plastic Plates etc. and Polystyrene Containers etc.) (England) Regulations 2023 ban supplying single-use plastic cutlery, balloon sticks, and food and drink containers of expanded or extruded polystyrene; drinks stirrers are also banned. Single-use plastic plates, bowls and trays are restricted: they may still be supplied as packaging (pre-filled or filled at the point of sale) or to another business. The rules cover items wholly or partly of plastic, including plastic coatings and linings, and biodegradable, compostable and recycled plastic.
• Scotland. Since 1 June 2022, it has been an offence to make or supply single-use plastic cutlery, plates and beverage stirrers, and EPS food containers, cups and beverage containers. Straws and balloon sticks are restricted.
• Wales. Since 30 October 2023, plastic plates (including paper plates with a plastic laminate), cutlery, stirrers, EPS cups and takeaway containers, balloon sticks, plastic-stemmed cotton buds and straws are banned, with exemptions for straws. Phase 2 (carrier bags, polystyrene lids, oxo-degradable plastics) has been postponed.
• Plastic Packaging Tax. A UK importer or maker of 10 tonnes or more of finished plastic packaging in 12 months must register. The tax applies to components with less than 30% recycled plastic, at £228.82 per tonne from 1 April 2026. HMRC lists disposable cups, plates and bowls as packaging for the tax.
• Food contact. In Great Britain, Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 continues as assimilated law, so a declaration of compliance is still needed.

United States

• Food contact. FDA says every substance in a food-contact article must be covered by a regulation in 21 CFR (the indirect additive rules in parts 174 to 178 cover packaging, including polymers in part 177 and paper in part 176), by GRAS status, a prior sanction, a Threshold of Regulation exemption, or an effective Food Contact Notification. A notification covers only the named manufacturer's substance, so ask your producer which resin grades and suppliers its compliance rests on.
• Polystyrene bans. Some states and cities ban foam food-service ware, and the rules vary. New York, for example, has banned EPS foam food-service containers (cups, plates, bowls, clamshells, trays, lids) and packing peanuts since 1 January 2022. Check the state and city where the goods will be used.

Gulf (Saudi Arabia, UAE)

• UAE. Resolution No. (380) of 2022 regulates single-use products across UAE markets. Dubai Municipality says the final phase, from 1 January 2026, covers single-use plastic plates, plastic cutlery including chopsticks, and plastic beverage cups and their lids; polystyrene cups, plates and containers, plastic stirrers, straws and table covers were already banned in Dubai in 2025. The emirates also apply their own resolutions, so ask your UAE importer what may be imported and sold for your exact item, including paper cups with plastic linings.
• Saudi Arabia. SASO made its technical regulation for degradable plastic products compulsory for importers and factories from April 2017, then for 16 products, including several kinds of bags, with a licensed logo. We could not confirm on SASO's site which products the regulation covers today. Ask your importer whether your HS code needs a SABER certificate and an oxo-biodegradable or other mark.

HS codes and proof of origin

Plastic tableware and kitchenware, including disposable cups, plates and cutlery, is heading 3924.10. Boxes and containers are 3923.10, bottles and similar articles 3923.30, and stoppers, lids, caps and closures 3923.50; confirm the code for preforms with your broker. Paper cups, plates and similar articles are 4823.69. Confirm every code with your broker before shipment.

• EU. Plastics and paper articles are industrial goods inside the EU–Türkiye customs union. Goods in free circulation move with an A.TR movement certificate, which proves customs status, not origin.
• UK. Under the UK–Türkiye trade agreement, the importer claims the preferential tariff on the strength of the exporter's origin declaration on the invoice or another commercial document. No EUR.1 or A.TR is used for the UK; A.TR is for the EU customs union only. A declaration is valid for 24 months for UK imports.
• US. On 29 October 2026, the general duty rates were 6.5% for plastic plates, cups, saucers and bowls (3924.10.20), 5.3% for trays (3924.10.30), 3.4% for other plastic tableware and kitchenware (3924.10.40), 3% for plastic boxes (3923.10.90) and bottles (3923.30), 5.3% for closures (3923.50) and Free for paper cups and round nested food containers (4823.69.00.20). Additional duties introduced since 2025 sit in chapter 99 of the HTS and have changed often, so check the rate for your entry date with your broker. Under 19 CFR 134.11, imported articles or their containers must show the English name of the country of origin to the "ultimate purchaser".

Packing, loading and shipping

• Agree how many pieces go in a sleeve, sleeves in a carton, the carton grade, and carton marking (item, lot, quantity, production date, and the origin marking your market needs).
• Cups and containers nest and weigh little, so a container usually fills by volume before weight. Ask each producer for its pallet pattern and load plan for your item; they differ per plant and per size.
• State whether you want pallets (and which size) or floor loading, stretch-wrap and corner boards, and the stacking height your warehouse accepts.
• Agree how sleeves are sealed and how cartons are protected from moisture and dirt, and ask for a clean, dry, odour-free container for food-contact goods.
• The EU PPWR also applies to the cartons, film and pallets you ship in. Ask your importer what it requires of transport packaging.

Questions buyers ask

Who are the largest plastic packaging manufacturers in Turkey?

On the 2025 rankings, Köksan (Gaziantep; PET preforms, closures, PET resin) is 85th on the İSO 500 and 141st among TİM's top exporters. Polibak (İzmir) and Süper Film (Gaziantep) make films and rank 204th and 295th on the İSO 500. No maker of mainly disposable cups or cutlery appears by name on these lists, so producers in that segment have to be found and checked one by one.

Can I import disposable plastic plates and cutlery from Turkey into Europe?

Not into the EU: plastic plates, cutlery, straws and stirrers, including plastic-coated paper plates and PLA items, have been banned there since 3 July 2021. England, Scotland and Wales ban plastic cutlery too; England still allows plastic plates, bowls and trays as packaging or for business supply. In the EU, plastic cups (with the plastic marking) and food containers not made of polystyrene foam remain legal.

Is a paper cup a legal alternative where plastic cups are banned?

Not automatically. EU, UK and Welsh rules treat paper with a plastic lining or coating as partly plastic. In the EU such cups must carry the plastic marking, and from 2030 paper packaging with 5% or more plastic falls under the PPWR ban on single-use plastic for dine-in use. Ask about the coating, and check the UAE rule for your item with your importer.

Do Turkish PET preform manufacturers offer food-grade rPET?

Some producers list recycling among their activities, Köksan among them. Whether a given preform contains food-grade rPET, and how much, is confirmed per producer and per order. For the EU, the recycled PET must come from a process that complies with Regulation (EU) 2022/1616; ask for the recycler's registration and the test reports.

What documents should a plastic cups manufacturer give me?

A declaration of compliance for each article and market (EU Regulation 10/2011, or the US 21 CFR basis), migration test reports matching your use, a PFAS statement for paper items sold in the EU, the market marking (EU cup marking, US country of origin), and export documents: A.TR for the EU, an origin declaration on the invoice for the UK.

What is the minimum order for disposable cups from Turkey?

It depends on the plant, the item and the print: a stock cup in plain white and a custom printed cup with a new mould are very different runs. We do not quote minimums. State your quantity per item and your yearly volume in the brief, and producers confirm what they can run and when.

What to put in your brief

Sending a brief to Lotvela

Lotvela is a sourcing intermediary based in Gaziantep, one of the cities where these factories operate. Send a brief and we contact and visit the producers that fit it, large or mid-size: we check product fit, a free production window, export record and documents, then send a dated shortlist with every claim marked confirmed or not confirmed. It is free for buyers: the producer pays a commission at the same rate for every producer, invoices and ships, and money never passes through Lotvela.

Sources

• Bölge İlleri 2025 İlk 6 Ay İhracat Performansları (GAİB)
• Bölge İlleri 2025 Son 6 Ay İhracat Performansları (GAİB)
• Bölge İlleri 2026 İlk 6 Ay İhracat Performansları (GAİB)
• İhracatçı firmaların kanuni merkezleri bazında sektör ihracat performansı, Eylül 2026 (Türkiye İhracatçılar Meclisi)
• 2025 Türkiye'nin İlk 1000 İhracatçı Firması, tables (Türkiye İhracatçılar Meclisi)
• Türkiye'nin 500 Büyük Sanayi Kuruluşu 2025 (İstanbul Sanayi Odası)
• Türkiye'nin İkinci 500 Büyük Sanayi Kuruluşu 2025 (İstanbul Sanayi Odası)
• UN Comtrade: Türkiye exports, HS 39, 3923, 3924.10 and 4823.69, 2025 (United Nations Statistics Division)
• Akpirinç, H.H. and Sandal, E.K. (2025), Gaziantep'te sanayi alt sektörlerinin yapısal profili, Âlemnümâ İnsan ve Toplum 2 (data: TOBB Sanayi Veri Tabanı 2025, SGK, OSB directorates)
• Directive (EU) 2019/904 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment, as adopted (legislation.gov.uk copy of the Official Journal text)
• Directive (EU) 2019/904 (EUR-Lex)
• Single-use plastics (European Commission, Environment)
• Commission guidelines on single-use plastic products, C(2021) 3762 (European Commission; copy published by Spain's Ministry for the Ecological Transition)
• Commission Notice updating the guidelines on single-use plastic products, C/2026/4813 (EUR-Lex)
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2151 on harmonised marking specifications (EUR-Lex)
• Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste (EUR-Lex)
• Commission Notice: Guidance document for Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste, C(2026) 3702 (European Commission)
• New EU rules on packaging enter into application (European Commission, 11 August 2026)
• Food contact materials: legislation (European Commission, Food Safety)
• Plastic recycling: Regulation (EU) 2022/1616 (European Commission, Food Safety)
• Single-use plastics bans and restrictions (GOV.UK, England)
• The Environmental Protection (Plastic Plates etc. and Polystyrene Containers etc.) (England) Regulations 2023, SI 2023/982 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Scotland) Regulations 2021: guidance, key information (Scottish Government)
• The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Act 2023 (Welsh Government)
• Check if you need to register for Plastic Packaging Tax (HMRC, GOV.UK)
• Work out which packaging is subject to Plastic Packaging Tax (HMRC, GOV.UK)
• Commission Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 on plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food, GB version (legislation.gov.uk)
• Determining the Regulatory Status of Components of a Food Contact Material (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)
• Polystyrene Foam Ban (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation)
• Dubai to enforce final phase of single-use plastic ban from 2026 (Dubai Municipality)
• Workshop on the technical regulation for degradable plastic products, January 2017 (SASO)
• SABER product conformity platform (SASO)
• Turkey: Customs Unions and preferential arrangements (European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union)
• Trade with Turkey: summary of the UK-Turkey trade agreement (GOV.UK)
• Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, headings 3923, 3924 and 4823 (USITC)
• 19 CFR Part 134 Country of origin marking (eCFR)
• Türk Akreditasyon Kurumu (TÜRKAK)
• Tesisler (Köksan)
• Süper Film (company site)
• Polibak (company site)
• Eskapet (company site)