According to a new survey by environmental compliance data company Ecoveritas, the “vast majority” of UK businesses view their packaging data collection capability as a “work in progress”.
86% of respondents are yet to establish their data collection processes fully, despite the strengthening of a statutory instrument (SI), titled Packaging Waste (Data Reporting) (England) Regulations 2023, which mandates obligated producers in England to collect and report data on the amount and type of packaging placed on the market from this month.
57.1% of respondents, or three in every five businesses surveyed, do not currently collect data on packaging waste or report on it.
The news comes as Defra (the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) said Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is still on track to be delivered in 2024 and it will remain in talks with producers as the “final design of the scheme and delivery plans are developed”.
This week, the British Retail Consortium said that the EPR and Deposit Return Schemes combined would “add around £4 billion in costs to retailers”, which will be passed down the line. 85.7% of respondents to the survey said they are concerned about the financial implications for their businesses.
42.9% of respondents rated themselves as unprepared for pEPR but aware of the changes, regarding their general preparedness for the upcoming reforms. 14.3% of those responding admitted to being unprepared.
85.7% of businesses rated the government’s communication quality around the legislative changes to packaging regulations between one and two, on a sliding scale of 1-10, where one is poor and 10 excellent. While 100% rated it lower than four.
Regarding preparations for 2024, over half of the businesses surveyed have yet to make plans, with the remainder internally resourced, 14.3% of which will rely on external software/systems.