Product Take-Back Conference Scheduled

Some of the world’s largest companies will share how they are saving millions on their packaging while ensuring compliance with global recycling laws at the “Take It Back!” conference, to be held February 24-26 in Alexandria, Va.

“Stewardship in the New Economy” is the theme for the eighth annual conference, organized by Raymond Communications, College Park, Md., and co-sponsored by Foresite Systems Ltd., Coventry, England, U.K.

Eastman Kodak managers will detail how they are saving millions on their packaging with new designs, while also saving thousands on European packaging fees using new software. Other cases will come from IBM Corp. on wood packaging, and the Boots Company, Britain’s largest drug store chain.

On the regulatory side, Julian Carroll from EUROPEN will explain the latest on the packaging directive and other European packaging legislation, while Kris Pollet from White & Case in Brussels will detail what to expect on implementation of the Europe’s electronics directives.

The new European directives will affect any product with a battery or a cord, requiring manufacturers to pay into collection groups. Electronics makers will then be affected by three layers of stewardship laws: packaging, products and batteries.

The electronics breakout session will also cover the status of the National Electronic Product Stewardship Initiative (NEPSI), U.S. state legislation, numbers on the U.S. EPA’s eCycling pilot project, and what to expect from European collection organizations from a new umbrella group.

The conference will include a special retailer panel, and a presentation from GE Medical on how the company is taking back its own equipment from hospitals. The panelists will tentatively representatives include Alberston’s and Tesco, the U.K.’s largest retailer.

Experts will also cover the latest on bottle deposit policies worldwide, paperboard packaging compliance, and details of new producer responsibility laws in Canada.