McDonald's Franchisee Loses Court Battle With German City Over Tax On Packaging

McDonald's franchisee Susanne Heppert lost an appeal against Tübingen, Germany over tax legislation regarding disposable packaging and cutlery.

The law imposes a tax of approximately $.50 on disposable packaging, $.20 on disposable cutlery, and other taxes on paper packaging.

,Newsweek reported that the increased cost to customers comes out to about $1.61 per meal.

in Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig,

In 2021, Heppert sued the city of Tübingen in Mannheim Administrative Court to stop the then-proposed tax from taking effect.

Heppert claimed the tax conflicted with German waste laws that require such matters to be legislated federally.

She added that the tax would raise her costs and harm her business, and was disproportionate and not expedient in protecting the environment.

McDonald's has 1,500 restaurants across Germany, all of which stand to be affected if the passage of Tübingen's tax represents a precedent for other German municipalities.

The tax law has been in effect in Tübingen since January 2022 when Heppert sued Tübingen once again, hoping to have the tax declared invalid.

In March 2022, the Mannheim Administrative Court ruled in favor of McDonald's although within the first few weeks of the packaging tax's imposition, Tübingen's waste volume had declined by 15%.

A McDonald's spokesperson said that they do not oppose environmental sustainability, but it thinks eliminating disposable packaging through local tax measures is not workable.
After McDonald's victory, Tübingen's mayor, Boris Palmer, appealed the case on behalf of the city. The Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig heard the appeal and ruled in favor of the city.