Packaging Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: What are the Packaging Waste Regulations?
A: The UK's Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations of 1997 and 2007 state that companies must recover and recycle packaging waste to meet national targets. These targets are revised upwards by a small amount anually.
The UK legislation is designed to share the responsibility for waste recovery among the various entities in the packaging chain (i.e. manufacturers, converters, importers, pack-fillers, and sellers). About 5,000 companies in England and Wales are obligated. In order to be obligated, a business must be a producer with a turnover of £2m or above and must handle at least 50 tonnes of packaging in a calendar year.
Q: What do obligated companies need to do?
A: Obligated companies must either directly register with the Environment Agency or join a registered compliance scheme on an annual basis.
They must calculate their packaging obligation based upon the weights of all packaging they handle, the activities they perform with this packaging, and the UK's recycling and recovery targets.
Companies then pay for an equivalent weight of packaging to be recycled on their behalf by reprocessors (e.g. a plastics recycler). If they are directly registered with the Environment Agency, they do this by purchasing Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs). Alternatively, compliance schemes (e.g., Valpak, Biffpack and Onyxpak) undertake to purchase PRNs on behalf of their members.
Q: Does this mean that packaging recycling is increasing?
A: Yes. In 1998, the UK recycled 27% of its packaging waste. By 2004, companies were recycling around 63% of their packaging waste. And by 2008, this had increased to near 70%. This significant rise can be largely attributed to the effectiveness of the UK's packaging waste legislation.
Q: What types of packaging must be recycled?
A: Materials are divided into seven categories: paper/cardboard, glass, aluminum, steel, plastic, wood, and other (which includes materials such as cork and textiles).
Q: What is the difference between recycling and recovery?
A: "Recovery" is a broader term than recycling, because it also includes processes like incineration (which can lead to energy recovery, though not the recovery of raw materials).
Q: What is the role of ecoVeritas?
A: ecoVeritas helps retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers calculate their packaging obligations. We also manage the Retailers' Producer Responsibility Association (REPRA), which calculates the packaging waste obligations of several large department stores in parallel.
Q: What is REPRA's role?
A: REPRA is a group of seven major UK-based retailers (Fenwick, Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, Harvey Nichols, House of Fraser, John Lewis, and Selfridges). Each year, ecoVeritas calculates the packaging obligations for these companies, and also provides a forum to discuss and exchange best practices, etc. Please visit the REPRA homepage for more details.
Q: Where can I find out more details about the UK's Packaging Regulations?
A: Further details can be found on DEFRA's packaging site.
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