As UK retailers adjust to a new packaging levy, Josh Pitman, Managing Director at sustainable packaging firm Priory Direct, is urging businesses not to absorb the additional costs but use this opportunity to adapt and reduce their environmental footprint, which will push down their fees.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees for packaging went live in October 2025 to generate revenue to support the costs of collecting, managing, recycling and disposing of the UK’s household packaging waste. The levy incentivises businesses to make more sustainable packaging choices by applying lower fees for these materials. Pitman is concerned that business leaders will treat EPR as another tax to budget for, rather than a chance to minimise their operation’s exposure to it.
Pitman, whose firm supplies planet-friendly packaging to more than 21,000 businesses, said: “There is a real risk that retailers will simply pay the fees rather than do what EPR is designed to achieve by incentivising a switch towards more environmentally friendly packaging materials. By doing so, firms will also pay much less, making it a win-win.
“As suppliers, we are seeing first hand that there is a lot of confusion among our clients, who are predominantly retailers, about how to respond to EPR legislation, even though reporting requirements have been in play since 2023. There is a lack of clear, practical guidance for affected businesses from government to illustrate, for example, that a firm currently using X material can switch to Y to reduce their exposure to the tax.
“It is falling to other companies to guide businesses through how to minimise their exposure, which may incur additional costs and put retailers off. For EPR to make the most impactful change, the government should be doing more to steer businesses towards paying less by being more sustainable. Currently, the approach is geared towards EPR being purely a money-making tax.”
EPR fees came into play from 1 October 2025 for ‘large’ producers, including many affected retailers, that must report packaging data and pay fees based on weight, material and recyclability of packaging. In this context, packaging is defined as any material that is used to cover or protect goods that are supplied and that makes handling and delivering goods easier and safer. It includes items designed to be filled at the point of sale, such as coffee cups. Large producers are defined as having a turnover above £2 million and importing or supplying more than 50 tonnes of packaging.
Pitman concludes: “The cost of sustainable packaging alternatives is, in the majority of cases, the same or lower. Now these also incur lower EPR fees, making this is a real opportunity, and financial carrot on a stick, for all retailers to make the switch to more environmentally friendly packaging alternatives. At a time when legislative and consumer pressures on retailers around ESG are growing, EPR has the potential to significantly reduce retailers’ impact on the planet.”
Priory Direct is based in Kent (Aylesford) and supplies sustainable packaging to over 21,000 businesses (eg Bamboo Clothing, Vivobarefoot, Dryrobe etc). It helps large retailers reduce their carbon footprint by tackling supply chain and operational challenges, helping to lower the environmental impact of ecommerce.
It also provides affordable, sustainable packaging materials to thousands of small businesses, with 2,000 products ranging from cardboard boxes to mailing bags. The company’s Priory Elements range is designed with recyclability in mind and is partnered with international organisation 1% For the Planet. The firm has numerous charitable partnerships, is carbon neutral, a B Corp, and working towards net neutrality.