Small businesses affected by new waste packaging rules urged to register for EPR scheme
Small businesses are being urged to ensure that they register and report their packaging data under new rules governing packaging waste.
For the first time companies in Northern Ireland that have an annual turnover of more than £1million and are responsible for over 25 tonnes of packaging each year need to record and report their packaging data under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme.
EPR for packaging is a UK-wide reform of an existing Producer Responsibility scheme for packaging. Among its core aims are increasing recycling rates of packaging, reducing waste and non-recyclable material being placed on the market and shifting the costs of managing household and street-binned packaging waste to producers of packaging.
The cut-off date for submitting the necessary 2024 data was 1st April 2025 and NIEA wants to ensure that all organisations that fall into the smaller producer category are aware of their new statutory obligations.
“Over 100 companies have contacted us to discuss their new responsibilities under the EPR regulations,” said an NIEA spokesperson.
“Some producers may think they’re not impacted by the new rules as they operate on a smaller scale compared to the well-known larger producers. We want to make sure that all organisations impacted by the scheme are brought on board rather than incurring a potential penalty for non-compliance.”
The new EPR scheme also marks significant changes for larger organisations in Northern Ireland which are now obliged to report recorded data every six months and will for the first time be liable for the full cost of managing packaging waste including costs associated with the collection, sorting, and treatment of household waste.
Businesses which now have to pay disposal costs under the scheme are reminded to do so from 1st October 2025.
“In future, the level of fees paid will depend on how recyclable the packaging is, meaning more sustainable packaging will result in lower costs,” added the spokesperson.
