The UK government plans to exempt glass drink containers supplied to pubs, restaurants and licensed hospitality venues from extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) fees, Defra has announced. The exemption is expected to apply to fees calculated from April 2027 for glass containers sold directly by companies to hospitality groups.
Defra said the decision responded to industry concerns that some businesses were effectively facing double charges on their recycling obligations because they cover both commercial waste service costs and pEPR fees. The government said pEPR must operate fairly and not disproportionately affect some industries and hospitality businesses, while maintaining the principle that producers should contribute to the costs of managing packaging waste. It said £1.4bn had already been provided to councils through the scheme to improve recycling services.
The pEPR regime began invoicing companies to cover the costs of managing the recycling and treatment of waste materials supplied to businesses and consumers. Fee structures are already under review. Defra said businesses would also be consulted on the fees they pay for packaging waste, so that easy-to-recycle packaging such as glass and paper costs less and hard-to-recycle packaging such as some plastics costs more. According to Defra, this could reduce fees for the most recyclable packaging by up to 40% per year.
Further consultations
Defra said it was committed to launching a call for evidence in December on mechanisms to support scaled-up commitments for reusing packaging as a way to curb waste and plastics use. A separate market engagement scheduled for early next year will see the pEPR administrator PackUK seeking feedback on the fees placed on manufacturers to cover the costs of treating packaging waste. The aim is to understand how to encourage greater use of easy-to-recycle materials.
The announcement also comes amid market pressure on glass production and packaging. Defra noted two investigations by the independent Trade Remedies Authority linked to imported glass containers from China and Turkey. Following a recommendation from the authority, a provisional anti-dumping measure on Chinese imports was imposed on 9 September. Both investigations remain ongoing.
Environment secretary Dame Angela Eagle said the decision had been taken in response to calls from the packaging and hospitality sectors about charges imposed on recyclable products. She said the government was committed to supporting British business, and that the changes backed the glass industry and pubs while ensuring efforts to reduce waste.
Industry response
British Glass welcomed the policy change but noted that the reforms would not take effect until the start of the third year of the pEPR regime, which runs from April 2027 to March 2028. Executive director Nick Kirk said the government had listened to concerns raised by glass manufacturers to avoid appearing to penalise the use of the material for packaging applications.
Kirk said the proposed changes began to address some unintended consequences of pEPR and better recognised the environmental benefits of glass. He pointed to the planned update to the glass material value, the proposed acceleration of modulation factors and the commitment to review future fee structures as moves in a fairer direction. He also welcomed measures addressing glass packaging supplied to the hospitality sector, though he said the full impact of the proposed exemption needed to be understood. Kirk welcomed the planned market engagement on the future fee methodology and potential support for reuse initiatives.
Andy Bagnall, director general of the British Soft Drinks Association, called the announcement a significant first step towards ensuring that drink containers used by the hospitality sector do not face double-charging. He said soft drinks businesses took seriously their responsibility for recycling the packaging they place on the market, and that a successful EPR scheme could increase recycling rates and reduce waste, but unfair allocation of costs undermined its effectiveness. He said the association looked forward to working with Defra on a solution for indirect supply that built on the announced ratio-based approach.
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said the stance on glass charges under pEPR would be a relief to pubs across the country. She said the direction of travel would be warmly welcomed, but the long-term cumulative impact of the UK’s packaging policies needed to be considered if there was to be a prosperous beer and pub sector in every postcode. She said the measures could reduce cost pressures on Britain’s brewers by tens of millions, but that the 12,000 publicans running leased and tenanted pubs as SMEs must also be included, otherwise more than a quarter of Britain’s pubs would not benefit equally.