Aquapak warns UK EPR program could raise grocery bills

Aquapak, a United Kingdom-based developer of flexible plastic packaging materials, has warned that the U.K.’s extended producer responsibility (EPR) program could increase the annual grocery bill for the average family of four in the U.K. by 312 pounds sterling ($419.35) per year.

The EPR program went into effect in October 2025. Aquapak cites research from NimbleFins, a personal finance website, that claims the average family of four in the U.K. spends 120 pounds sterling ($161.29) on household shopping per week currently, and 6,240 pounds sterling ($8,387.03) per year. Additionally, Aquapak cites Bank of England research that predicts a half-percent increase in household shopping caused by the introduction of EPR fees.

Aquapak notes that under EPR legislation for packaging, brand owners are required to pay a fee per ton, which varies depending on material category. Under the U.K. model, a red, amber, green (RAG) fee system defined under the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) also will be introduced. Aquapak describes the system as, “The more recyclable the packaging, the lower the fee. The less recyclable, the higher the fee.”

In theory, the company says this system should encourage smarter packaging design, lighter materials and “less wasteful formats” while easing pressure on public budgets. However, Aquapak claims there is a lack of clarity because of definition changes, guidance shifts and “illustrative fees” for those developing new, more sustainable products, such as converters, material innovators and coating suppliers.

Aquapak says that the U.K.’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs’ (DEFRA’s) definition is compositional rather than performance based. For example, the company says paper is packaging made from at least 95 percent fiber by weight under the current EPR definitions, and if a pack contains more than 5 percent non-fiber material, it automatically is pushed into a new category called “fiber composites” that commands higher fees than the plastic packaging it is designed to replace.

“The intention of EPR is to make more producers and brands use more recyclable packaging,” Aquapak CEO Mark Lapping says. “However, a lack of clarity and flawed definitions means that instead of pushing for better design, some are already choosing to simply absorb the fees and pass the cost on to consumers, even though the consumer is already paying council tax towards the cost of disposal.

“A cost which was supposed to be a tax on the brand and instead the consumer will be paying for it twice at a time when the cost of living is still high. That’s hardly the outcome anyone wanted when EPR was first proposed.”