The UK government has agreed to investigate a new approach to the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme, according to a statement from local trade body UKHospitality.
In a recent meeting with Mary Creagh, Minister for UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the association said it was agreed the department would work together with the sector to identify a solution.
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UKHospitality added it was optimistic a solution could be proposed for the EPR scheme’s second year.
Under the EPR scheme, producers must report how much packaging they put into the market and pay associated rates per tonnage.
The legislation necessary to enact EPR came into force on 1 January while the fees kicked in on 1 April.
UKHospitality said it has been advocating for modifications to ease the financial burden on its members.
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By GlobalDataAmong the suggestions made by the trade body is that packaging supplied directly to hospitality businesses and exclusive wholesalers be exempted from EPR charges.
Furthermore, it proposed a mechanism to ensure that EPR fees are only applicable to the volume of packaged products sold for off-premises consumption.
“I’m pleased that Defra is finally properly engaging with this issue and acting on our concerns,” UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said.
“UKHospitality has been campaigning on this issue for over a year and warning of the unfair and costly impact it will have on hospitality businesses.
“We have put forward clear proposals that can solve this issue, which include an exemption for closed loop hospitality businesses, and I hope that we can work at pace with the Government to put something in place for the second year of the scheme.
“Of course, this is not an ideal timeline for businesses affected this year. In light of the Government acknowledging that there is a problem that needs solving, I urge hospitality suppliers to recognise this and not pass additional EPR costs through to operators.”
Just Drinks has contacted Defra for comment.
In March, a group of drinks trade bodies representing beer, wine, spirits, cider and hospitality, sent a letter to the government which highlighted that the implementation of EPR was “unviable”.
The group had called on the government to delay the introduction of fees.
One of the major points raised in the letter was the lack of clarity around the EPR fees.
“Currently, businesses will start to accrue a liability for fees from the start of the 2025/26 financial year in less than six weeks’ time – at which time actual fees will not be known,” a statement from the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) said at the time. “No business can be expected to sign up or account for unknown costs.”
At the time, trade bodies also pointed to the fees associated with glass packaging. The industry pointed out that glass is an “infinitely recyclable” material, yet the “disproportionately high fees” imposed on it are “discouraging” its use.
The fees for glass, they argued, could result in a shift towards “less recyclable materials”.
Final fee estimates for the first year of the EPR scheme are not yet available, but were due to be released “after 1 April” according to the government’s website.
According to the WSTA in March, Defra’s latest estimates for EPR fees on glass sat at £240 per tonne, a significant hike on earlier estimates of estimates of £110 to £215 per tonne.
