Packaging: EU Law

Andrew George
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 apply to UK companies that sell products which were packaged in (a) other EU countries which have implemented the EC Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste 94/62/EC and (b) non-EU countries.

Joan Ruddock
Any business which places packaging or packaging materials on the UK market and has an annual turnover of more than £2 million and handles more than 50 tonnes of packaging a year is obligated under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 to recover and recycle a proportion of the packaging they handle.

Andrew George
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has considered the merits of compelling packaging on products sold in the UK to carry a compliance mark to signify that the producer has complied with the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007.

Joan Ruddock
In the UK, only companies which have a turnover of over £2 million and handle over 50 tonnes of packaging a year are obligated under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007. Therefore, companies below this threshold level would not need to comply with the provisions in the regulations and would not carry a compliance mark. A mandatory compliance mark could therefore be misleading for consumers.