The UK government will next year exempt glass drink containers supplied directly 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 being charged twice for recycling obligations. Those businesses cover commercial waste service costs and also pay pEPR fees. The pEPR regime began invoicing companies last year to fund the recycling and treatment of packaging waste supplied to businesses and consumers.
The government said a review of fee structures was already under way and that it had decided to address concerns raised by the British glass packaging industry directly. It also plans further market engagement on how the pEPR regime is managed.
Defra said businesses would be consulted on the fees they pay for packaging waste, with the aim of making easy-to-recycle materials such as glass and paper cost less and hard-to-recycle packaging such as some plastics cost more. According to the department, this could reduce fees for the most recyclable packaging by up to 40% per year.
The government maintained that producers should contribute to the cost of managing packaging waste and reducing it. It said £1.4bn had already been provided to councils through the scheme to improve recycling services, while acknowledging that pEPR must operate fairly and must not disproportionately affect particular industries or hospitality businesses.
Consultations and trade measures
Defra said it would launch a call for evidence in December on mechanisms to support scaled-up commitments to reuse packaging and curb waste and plastics use. A separate market engagement early next year will involve PackUK, the pEPR administrator, seeking feedback on the fees charged to manufacturers for treating packaging waste. The exercise is intended to examine how to encourage greater use of easy-to-recycle materials.
The announcement also came alongside government action on market pressures in glass production and packaging. Two investigations are under way by the independent Trade Remedies Authority into 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, and both investigations remain ongoing.
Environment secretary Dame Angela Eagle said the decision responded to calls from the packaging and hospitality sectors over charges on recyclable products. She said the changes backed the glass industry and pubs while supporting efforts to reduce waste.
Industry reaction
British Glass said the policy change was welcome but noted that the reforms would not take effect until the start of the third year of the pEPR regime, running from April 2027 to March 2028. Nick Kirk, the group’s executive director, said the government had listened to glass manufacturers’ concerns about appearing to penalise the use of glass for packaging.
Kirk said the proposed changes began to address unintended consequences of pEPR and better recognised glass’s environmental benefits. He pointed to a planned update to the glass material value, a proposed acceleration of modulation factors and a commitment to review future fee structures as moves toward a fairer system. He also welcomed measures covering glass packaging supplied to hospitality, while saying the full impact of the proposed exemption still needed to be understood.
Andy Bagnall, director general of the British Soft Drinks Association, called the announcement a significant first step toward ensuring that drink containers used by hospitality did not face double charging. He said soft drinks businesses take responsibility for recycling packaging, and that a successful EPR scheme can raise recycling rates and reduce waste, but unfair cost allocation undermines its effectiveness. He said the association looked forward to working with Defra on a solution for indirect supply that builds on the ratio-based approach announced.
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said the direction on glass charges would be a relief to pubs. She said the measures could reduce cost pressures on UK brewers by tens of millions, but argued that the 12,000 publicans running leased and tenanted pubs as small and medium-sized enterprises must also be included. Otherwise, she said, more than a quarter of Britain’s pubs would not benefit equally from the change.
The government’s exemption covers glass containers sold directly to hospitality groups. Further industry campaigning is expected over drinks in glass containers supplied indirectly through wholesalers, an issue the announcement did not resolve.