Sustainable waste management company Biffa has released a new guide to EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) rules to help UK businesses meet updated packaging waste responsibility legislation.
The new rules, which mean that producers rather than consumers are held responsible for the collection, sorting, recycling or disposal of any product packaging brought into the UK market and destined for households, aim to help the UK work towards a more circular economy.
From this year companies must report their data with EPR fees set to be introduced from October 2025, but the rules differ depending on business size with exemptions for companies with an annual turnover of less than £1 million and handling less than 25 tonnes of packaging.
The Biffa guide outlines how companies can prepare and includes expert guidance on how EPR might impact packaging design and recycling as well as the UK’s wider sustainability strategy.
The guide comes after the rules were delayed, following lobbies from businesses calling for more time to prepare.
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“EPR is an important first step to understand what packaging is flowing through Britain and what happens to it. The modulated fees will be introduced to drive circular or more recyclable packaging choices which will lead to less single-use and more recyclability; however recycling is not the whole story,” said Biffa waste strategy and packaging manager Roger Wright and head of sustainability and regulation Charlotte Scallon.
They continued: “The carbon cost of materials is also important and should be factored into EPR as LCA reporting evolves to a more centralised and independent system.”
“To keep pace with progressive legislation businesses must remain focused to enable better packaging and material choices. Data analysis efforts and industry partnerships will be key to incorporating the carbon cost of materials into future packaging designs”.
Biffa CEO Michael Topham added that “this commitment from the UK government and industries to sustainable legislation will play a vital role in growing our infrastructure, boosting domestic supply chains and recycling capabilities to a level where we can realise a true circular economy in the UK”.
