NEWS EXTRA


BHETA to lobby on Extended Producer Responsibility


With packaging costs potentially set to rise tenfold for suppliers if the Government’s


proposed


Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) (packaging sustainability) legislation proceeds as currently


drafted, BHETA is


not only advising members on the essential steps that every company needs to undertake as soon as possible, but it


is also launching its latest lobbying campaign on the subject. Will Jones, Chief Operating


Officer at BHETA explains: “Unless we intervene to demonstrate the inequity of the present legislative draft, there will be a huge shift in financial responsibility for the treatment of waste packaging throughout its lifecycle, with suppliers picking up 100% of the bill for


WHAT IS EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY (EPR)?


Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is an environmental policy that makes producers responsible for the entire life cycle of the products that they introduce on the market, from their design until end of life (including waste collection and recycling). Under EPR regulations, liable companies must mitigate the environmental impacts of their products throughout the entire product life cycle.


Starting in 2022, if you sell in France and/or Germany, marketplaces must confirm that you are complying with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations in the country where you are selling.


• Find out more at https://epr-info.com www.diyweek.net


branded products. “Currently, the costs for kerbside recycling / disposal of


packaging


products is split roughly as follows:


10% by


from branded producers


through PRNs; 10% by retailers; 80% by the taxpayer through councils. Under EPR in 2023, for payment in 2024, this will change to the whole cost of collection and disposal met by producers through modified PRNs. This will be the most significant change to Packaging Regulations, indeed the whole PRN system, for a generation.” EPR is


currently set to be


charged in the UK from 2024 based on levels of 2023 packaging.


Jones continues: “Not only is it vital that suppliers begin to prepare now for both the rules and the new reporting that will enable those rules, but it is also important that we do what we can collectively to explore improvements to the EPR draft. Of course, no-one would deny the importance of packaging changes


in the interests of


sustainability and the planet – it is the proposed methodology that is at issue.


“It assumes that producers


can make all the packaging decisions, while the reality is that the relative


size of many


producers and retailers means that the retailers frequently specify the packaging requirement, and the producer has a choice of meeting


the specification or


losing the business. Some joint responsibility would lead to far more progressive thinking in terms of packaging overall. “Secondly it assumes that only producers benefit from packaging, whereas the benefit is shared throughout the supply chain, from manufacturers to retailers to the consumer, through safe and secure transportation of goods, minimized waste due to breakage, clear communication of features and benefits, instructions on how to use products safely and efficiently, and so on.


“Most worryingly, the reality is that producers will be unable to absorb these additional costs on their own and as such they will be passed up the supply chain to retailers and ultimately to the consumer, adding yet more pressure to


the already


challenging situation on inflation.” Initially, BHETA will be asking


the Government to unpick the proposed legislation as it stands in favour of something more equitable, more practical, and more motivational for everyone involved. It is also providing an advisory pack to members to facilitate what is hoped to be a collective industry campaign for a more workable solution. BHETA is also asking for a delay of at least a year until the details of requirements and charges have been outlined in full, and a phased introduction to allow for changes to be introduced. Jones concludes: “BHETA’s campaign is not about denying the need for change. A more equitable spread of the inevitable cost and an achievable timescale is what’s needed. That way,


all


suppliers and all retailers will be able to take genuinely positive steps towards the shared goal, rather than being bounced towards a pricing place which consumers will have difficulty accepting.”


• For more information on BHETA lobbying and legislative advice, contact BHETA Member Services by email at rk@bheta.co.uk or call 0121 237 1130.


DECEMBER 2022 DIY WEEK 7


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