Extended Producer Responsibility for the Construction Sector – what you need to know

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a new piece of UK legislation, which will come into force in 2023 and directly affect businesses that produce packaging waste. Divisional Director, Matt Nichols recently shared thoughts for Valpak’s blog series on Extended Producer Responsibility. Here is what he had to say:

We are pleased to provide insight into Extended Producer Responsibility for Valpak’s blog series. Here we provide a summary.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a new piece of UK legislation, which will come into force in 2023 and directly affect businesses that produce packaging waste. Since the introduction of the UK Packaging Waste Regulations in 1997, the waste and recycling landscape has changed considerably. There remains a massive shortfall when it comes to the amount of recyclable material being reprocessed back into secondary resources – meaning that too much packaging is still being disposed of as waste, rather than recycled. As a result, this new legislation will place the cost and responsibility of new packaging coming into the marketplace squarely at the feet of the brand holders and importers that are creating it.

Many businesses are not aware of how much plastic packaging they use because they have never had to report it before. But with change on the horizon there is most definitely a requirement to get prepared, which will help protect your business from any additional costs coming down the line.

Tip 1: Don’t panic – there is time to get your house in order, but you need to start it now.

Tip 2: Analyse the packaging you use to better understand what arrives on your sites and what can be cut out or changed.

Tip 3: Set a strategy that changes the way your business managed materials and wasted packaging.

Tip 4: Collaborate with suppliers to bring about change.

Tip 5: Have your say – the Government will carry out consultations, so keep an eye on when these are so you can help shape the changes coming in.

At Reconomy, we have many great examples of instances where we have worked with our housebuilding customers to help them analyse their packaging. We identified materials by manufacturer by gathering the data and capturing it using the Insight Platform developed by our Group company, Valpak.

If you need help setting a strategy for your waste and resources, get in touch with Reconomy. We can help you to stay ahead of the game, with planning and road mapping that is aligned with the direction of the Government’s environmental strategy.

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