While some restaurants say the changes will generate additional work and costs, platforms like Bolt Food do not expect them to affect couriers.

A bill being drafted will require the option of reusable packaging for food ordered via delivery apps. While this option is often available in any case via such platforms, it is not yet a mandatory requirement.

The changes accompany new EU packaging rules due to come into force. In Estonia, from 2028, all food outlets selling takeaway meals, including via a courier app, will have to offer customers a reusable packaging option alongside single-use packaging.

"Since food outlets will have to comply with this obligation, and ordering food via delivery services is very popular in Estonia, the draft legislation includes a technical solution allowing consumers to choose, when placing an order, whether their food is packed in a single-use or reusable container. We are enabling food outlets to meet this obligation through food delivery platforms," Dagny Repp, head of packaging policy at the Ministry of Climate, told "Aktuaalne kaamera."

Bolt Food, one of Estonia's primary food delivery platforms, says the rule change will not create additional work. The option to choose reusable packaging is already available to restaurants that want to go down that route.

At the same time, the company's head of strategy, Triin Toimetaja, said she does not foresee the food couriers themselves playing a role, for instance in a reusable packaging return system to make it more convenient for customers.

"If the partner operating the reusable packaging system were willing to pay for the courier's trip from the customer's location to the return point, then in theory something like this could be possible. The question, is how would the process work in a way which is convenient for the courier and ensures they get paid for their stage in the chain. At the moment, it seems unlikely to us that couriers will end up transporting reusable containers," Toimetaja explained.

Not all restaurants welcome the change: Dmitri Žuk, owner of Buzz Kebab, said he understands the new rules are needed to protect the environment, but added they will bring significant additional work and costs.

"My initial thought is that this is yet another extra task and another extra expense. It seems our staff and chefs will have more work to do, and as the owner and founder I'll have to pay more for that. Right now, I don't see a good solution here," Žuk said.

Žuk added he has also invested heavily in the design of his packaging and fears reusable containers will undermine those efforts.

"My own branded packaging is very important because I put so much thought into all the different details. It's a big part of my brand. I'm afraid that under this new law, I won't have that opportunity anymore," he said.

The reusable packaging requirement is one part of broader EU packaging reforms.

While customers ordering food via courier apps will have a choice between reusable and single-use packaging, single-use tableware such as plastic cutlery will be banned for dine-in service, and all businesses will be required to use reusable dishes and containers in those cases.

The EU law changes will also bar some types of fruit and vegetables from being sold individually shrink-wrapped in plastic. The directive, due to come into effect at the start of 2030, has not been finalized, and neither has the domestic legislation.

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