More than 100 businesses in the global packaging value chain, together with over 50 other organisations, have publicly announced their support for the adoption of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).
The organisations say that without EPR, packaging collection and recycling is unlikely to be meaningfully scaled and tens of millions of tonnes of packaging will continue to end up in the environment every year.
A statement on the matter has been published by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) and has already been signed by leading brands and retailers, manufacturers and recyclers, along with investors and NGOs.
Companies which have already signed on include: Beiersdorf, Borealis, Berry Global, Danone, Diageo, DS Smith, Ferrero, FrieslandCampina, H&M, Henkel, Inditex, Indorama Ventures, L’Oreal, Mars, Mondi, Nestle, PepsiCo, Pick n Pay, Reckitt Schwarz Group, Tetra Pak, The Coca-Cola Company, Unilever, Veolia, Walmart and WWF.
According to the EMF, currently, the economics do not stack up for a circular economy for packaging, as collection, sorting and recycling or processing packaging costs more than the revenues made from selling the recycled materials.
“We need dedicated ongoing and sufficient funding to make the economics of recycling work. This statement and the supporting position paper set out why mandatory, fee-based EPR is the only proven and likely way to provide this funding,” according to the EMF’s statement.
“To solve the packaging waste and pollution crisis, a comprehensive circular economy approach is required.
“The circular economy approach would lead to significant economic, environmental and social benefits, and contribute to addressing major global challenges, such as plastic pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss.”
The Foundation says it hopes its statement and the supporting position paper make it clear why mandatory, fee-based EPR is the only proven and likely way to provide this funding.
By signing the statement, endorser organisations recognise this need and make three firm commitments, which are:
- Ensuring their entire organisation is aligned on, and their actions are in line with this statement.
- To be constructive in their engagement with governments and other stakeholders – advocating for the establishment of well-designed EPR policies, and being supportive in working out how to implement and continuously improve EPR schemes in the local context.
- Engaging with their peers and the relevant associations and collaborations we are part of to work towards aligning their positions and actions accordingly.
“We support this statement on the important role that well-designed EPR systems can play in keeping packaging material out of the environment and in the circular economy,” Michael Goltzman, vice-president of global policy and sustainability at The Coca-Cola Group, said in a follow-up statement.
“Good EPR schemes can motivate businesses and help us achieve our circular economy targets.”
