UK increases plastic packaging import tax
Companies operating in the UK that produce or import plastic packaging components containing less than 30% recycled content by weight must pay a higher tax on the materials from 1 April.
Under an amendment to the Finance Act, the fee will increase from £210.82/tonne to £217.85/tonne.
Companies must register for the plastic packaging tax scheme, calculate payments and pay them every three months.
French companies must submit declarations on packaging reuse by 30 April
From 15 February, companies in France placing at least 10,000 products on the market using packaging in 2023 must submit a declaration to the French National Reuse Observatory by 30 April using its online platform.
Declarations must contain information on the total quantity of packaging a company has placed on the market and the proportion of reused packaging. This obligation was included in Decree No 2022-507, which came into force in April 2022 and lays down the requirements for companies manufacturing, importing and distributing packaging.
The definition of packaging includes sales or primary packaging, grouped or secondary packaging, and transport or tertiary packaging. Transport packaging does not include road, rail, ship or air containers.
The requirement does not apply to extended producer responsibility (EPR) for household packaging, chemical products, or construction industry building products and materials.
Sweden to scrap business tax on plastic bags
Companies importing or placing plastic carrier bags on the market in Sweden will no longer have to pay tax on them from 1 November.
The government is repealing the Act on Plastic Carrier Bag Tax (SFS 2020:32), which it introduced in 2020 to achieve the EU’s consumption target for plastic carrier bags.
Consumption levels are now below the EU's target, the government says, and the tax is no longer needed. Abolishing it is also expected to reduce administrative costs.
Northern Ireland increases glass recycling targets for large packaging firms
Companies handling large volumes of packaging in Northern Ireland that turn over at least £2m a year will need to comply with higher glass recycling targets from 1 February.
If a facility manufactures, converts, packs/fills, imports, sells and/or handles more than 50 tonnes a year of packaging, it will be required to re-melt 3% more glass than before.
An amendment to the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2023 modifies the formula used to calculate how much glass a company must re-melt.
Northern Ireland has retained the EU directive on packaging and packaging waste (PPWD), which introduced producer responsibility for the management of packaging materials. The country’s packaging waste regulations implemented this directive, setting minimum recovery and recycling targets for packaging waste for producers. The amendment increases the recycling obligations for glass packaging in line with EU targets and consultation proposals.
Sweden to require more information from single-use plastic packaging producers
Companies placing single-use plastics on the market in Sweden must submit extra reporting information to the EPA from 1 January.
On 1 December, the government published the EPA Regulations (NFS 2023:13) on the obligation to provide information on packaging and packaging waste.
This requires companies to distinguish between packaging made entirely of plastic and packaging made partly of plastic when reporting the number of single-use cups, lids and food boxes it places on the market.
Additionally, the regulations scrap an exemption that allowed companies not to report materials in packaging that constituted less than 5% of the total weight of the packaging.
Producers in Sweden must submit annual reports to the EPA detailing the quantity of packaging they have introduced to the market, categorised by material type.
Denmark consults on plans to launch EPR scheme from 1 April
Denmark is consulting on plans to require companies placing packaging on the market to register and report the amounts from 1 April, in line with the EU’s packaging and packaging waste directive (PPWD).
The proposed revised draft statutory order on the registration and reporting of packaging sets out detailed provisions concerning extended producer responsibility (EPR) requirements in the country. It would require companies to register in the Danish Producer Responsibility (DPA) register by 31 August 2024 at the latest and report the amount of packaging it places on the market each year.
The proposal defines "producer" as any manufacturer, importer or distributor established in or outside of Denmark making filled packaging, service packaging or recycled packaging available on the market for the first time.
France brings household packaging targets in line with EU
France is consulting until 25 November on a draft order that would bring household packaging recycling targets more in line with those of the EU, replacing the 75% recycling target for household packaging with a trajectory ranging from 63% in 2024 to 69% in 2029.
The draft order would also establish what criteria a company must fulfil to qualify as an "eco-organisation" able to manage waste under the country’s extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme.
An eco-organisation is a state-approved structure under private law (such as companies and associations) set up and managed by producers, distributors and importers to meet their obligations.
It would apply to, among others, producers (manufacturers, importers, distributors) of packaged products, printed paper and graphic paper consumed or used by households, collective bodies applying for approval to act as an "eco-organisation" or coordinating bodies for the household packaging waste sector, paper and graphic paper, reuse operators and waste management operators.
Scotland delays DRS implementation date
Scotland has delayed the start date of its deposit return scheme (DRS) for drinks in single-use containers. It will now come into force on 1 October 2025 instead of 1 March 2024.
From this date, companies supplying or selling drinks in single-use containers – known as "scheme articles" – for retail sale must register as a producer with the Scottish EPA. They must operate a return point unless 90% of the items are sold on the retailer’s premises. Large retailers of single-use drinks containers with a turnover of more than £1bn a year must set up a take-back service.
Producers must also meet the following new collection targets:
- between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2026, 80% of packaging must be collected; and
- from 2027, the minimum collection target will increase to 90%.
Facilities selling scheme articles must also:
- charge a £0.20p deposit for drinks sold in single-use containers;
- display information in any place where the drink is sold, indicating that it is subject to a deposit; and
- collect and keep four years’ worth of records on the number of articles it made available on the market, their material and how many were returned.
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