Packaging EPR (pEPR) is a well-established mechanism grounded in the ‘polluter pays’ principle, helping to manage the environmental costs of packaging by putting the onus on the maker to cover the costs of the waste they create. It’s been successfully implemented across the EU and globally for over two decades, and at WRAP we support its introduction in the UK.
pEPR is a key enabler of a better packaging system for citizens, one which enables us all to enjoy all the benefits of packaged goods, without the damage caused by pollution, or runaway consumption of precious virgin resources. Simply put, it’s the only way to create the sustainable packaging system that citizens expect us as a sector to deliver.
Achieving this transformation takes work, and we in the UK have a big opportunity as we roll out pEPR to make sure we learn from other markets and put the right measures in place to realise the benefits we’re looking for and mitigate the risks. And the biggest businesses are calling for this too, not just in the UK, but globally.
At WRAP, we see three main potential benefits to pEPR, especially when implemented in combination with other key reforms like Simpler Recycling in the UK.
Through pEPR, we can:
- Create a more equitable funding model for our recycling system, with businesses who produce packaging funding the sustainable management of waste, instead of taxpayers. The packaging reforms in the UK, including pEPR and Simpler Recycling, will yield £10 billion investment in recycling services across the UK over the next 10 years, and in England alone, support up to 21,000 new jobs (source).
- Drive up recyclability and reduce unnecessary single use packaging by incentivising businesses to design better products and services for people and planet.
- Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the UK’s recycling system through increased performance, ultimately increasing collection and recycling rates and reducing the environmental footprint of UK packaging.
The introduction of policy reforms is necessary but not sufficient to achieve these benefits. Interconnected policies, such as The Plastics Tax and the Packaging Recovery Note system need to be reviewed to ensure that the system is working harmoniously and delivering the outcomes that the value chain is aiming for.
For pEPR, there are a few things we can do to make sure we get the system we want.
Firstly, whilst pEPR will provide the funding mechanism for local authorities to provide waste and recycling services for packaging, it will take a concerted effort at local level to use this funding to good effect. We see many local authorities achieving performance improvements as we support them to roll out Simpler Recycling. In conjunction with pEPR there is a significant opportunity to drive up the overall performance in our collections and recycling system. By working together to improve local authority services, we can do a better job of collecting and processing existing waste streams, as well as bringing down the overall system cost of waste management and recycling.
And citizen behaviour should be a key consideration. Through our work with local authorities over many years we know that system design plays here, particularly the relationship between residual waste collections capacity and frequency, and recycling collections. Our evidence also shows what works best to improve recycling performance and we’re proud that our knowledge and support to local authorities and Welsh Government has helped Wales to become the world’s second-best recycling nation.
Secondly, pEPR has the opportunity to drive ‘better’ packaging by incentivising a reduction in necessary packaging, increasing reusable packaging systems and increasing recyclable material. These will bring the costs of pEPR down. The recent Reuse Infrastructure Modelling report1 estimated a 94% reduction in pEPR costs to business producers per item switched to reuse, as well as £314-£577m savings across the system if 30% of product sales were shifted to reuse, generating 13,000 new jobs. There are many barriers and much investment needed to make this level of shift. Leading retailers came together earlier this year aligned on a shared ambition and commitment to developing a standardised, interoperable reuse system2. And given the scale of the challenge and opportunities, reuse will be a cornerstone of the new Packaging Pact, which will follow on from The UK Plastics Pact, to be launched in 2026.
The complexity of introducing pEPR for business producers cannot be overstated and there’s more we can do to reduce the data burden on businesses, another goal of the new UK Packaging Pact. The UK pEPR scheme has exemptions for smaller businesses - only larger businesses that introduce more than 25 tonnes of packaging to the UK market per year are in scope, a much higher threshold than other European countries with the sole exception of the Netherlands. But for those who do need to report, we see scope to harmonise the different data reporting requirements, reducing this burden, and making the path to a sustainable packaging system more efficient.
Finally, but by no means least important, a focus on infrastructure will be needed. WRAP believe that the current policies are not enough to drive the critical infrastructure that we need, particularly for materials where there is high risk around exports and market volatility – plastic packaging in particular. As well as wholesale policy review, better information is needed to map infrastructure requirements in detail, understanding where losses in materials are occurring and engaging with investors for targeted intervention.
For many years WRAP has been monitoring citizen behaviours and attitudes to recycling. Confidence levels in recycling have been declining in recent years, with one in five people feeling that recycling is not worthwhile. And these people are less likely to recycle all that they can. Showcasing to citizens what their recycling can be made into and where it is going, provides them with confidence that their efforts are worthwhile.
And ultimately when it comes to pEPR implementation, worthwhileness is what it’s all about. Everyone has worked so hard to get to this point, let’s ensure that we now implement in a way that is worthwhile for business, people and the planet.