EPR Guide - Flipbook - Page 27
3. Collect Data by Material, Weight, and Type
Set up a system (spreadsheets, software or your ERP system) to measure all packaging 昀氀ows monthly
or quarterly. For each packaging item (SKU or category), track weight in kilograms, material type, and its
packaging category (primary/secondary/tertiary). You need the total weights per material for reporting.
Common practical steps include:
• Working with packaging suppliers to get weights of each packaging component (e.g. weight of an empty
bottle, cap, label, cardboard box, pallet wrap per metre, etc.). Multiply by units used to get tonnages.
• Establish processes in production/packing lines to sum up packaging usage (e.g. number of boxes used,
昀椀lm rolls consumed).
• For imports, you might need to estimate packaging weight that comes with products. For instance, if you
import 1000 units each with 50g of packaging, that’s 50kg imported packaging.
• Don’t forget transit packaging: pallets, shrink wrap, dunnage, etc., if it’s part of delivering goods. Even if
it ends up as business waste, you must record it.
• Keep records by time period (to separate H1 vs H2 if large).
Also, gather any data needed for RAM assessments if possible – E.g. what plastics are widely collected vs
not. In practice, PackUK will do the RAM rating once you submit detailed data on material compositions. But
you should collect data such as “material type (polymer,
polymer code), is it rigid/昀氀exible plastic,” etc., as now
required in reports (large producers had to start splitting out
昀氀exible vs rigid plastic in 2025 reporting).
Ensure data is auditable and veri昀椀able. Regulators can
ask for evidence of your 昀椀gures. Good practice is to retain
invoices, spec sheets, or weights calculations for all
packaging data submitted.
4. Submit Reports on Time
Mark the key reporting deadlines on your calendar and
submit on or before due dates via the online portal:
• Large producers: every 6 months (by 1st Oct and 1st
Apr).
• Small producers: annually (by 1st Apr).
• Nation data (large only): by 1st Dec each year for the
previous year’s distribution.
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