Retail bosses urge government to delay packaging reforms

Retail bosses across the UK are calling on the government to delay recycling reforms that are due to be introduced next year, warning that the reforms will create £1.7bn in extra costs for businesses each year.

According to the Guardian, retailers, food producers and trade bodies are lobbying to delay the introduction of the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (EPR) scheme, arguing that the extra costs will be passed onto consumers through higher food prices.

Set to launch next year, the EPR scheme will mean that food producers and retailers that sell own-brand products will be required to report packaging waste data from January and pay the full cost of packaging waste disposal from April.

It would apply to companies with a turnover of more than £1m, with the money from charges going towards local councils to help fund green bin collections.

The industry’s warning comes after crisis talks were recently held at Downing Street in response to spiralling food prices. 

Earlier this week, and following the talks, Iceland also warned against the new packaging recycling scheme.

An Iceland spokeswoman told The Times: “The government is driving up costs … It is within [its] control to look at what individual departments are doing and pause, stop and rethink. Anything to reinforce the need for the government to play a positive role — take action as opposed to hold meetings — in costs and ease of doing business would help.”

In addition, the British Retail Consortium has urged the government to “urgently rethink” the recycling reforms, while Karen Betts, CEO of the Food and Drink Federation, said that delaying the EPR “would seem to us to be a sensible thing to do”.