British Retail Consortium

UK compliance schemes resist calls to fold PRNs into EPR

UK compliance scheme operators, grouped in the Packaging Scheme Forum, have launched a campaign against calls from retailers and manufacturers to scrap Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs) and fold them into the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme ahead of the Budget. The British Retail Consortium and Food and Drink Federation argue PRNs add cost without improving recycling rates. The PSF counters that USD 127m (GBP 95m) in PRN revenue last year was committed to new UK recycling infrastructure, and that removing PRNs without an alternative risks destabilising funding for recycling.

Why this mattersThe outcome will reshape how UK producers fund recycling infrastructure and could alter compliance costs across the packaging supply chain.

• The Packaging Scheme Forum (PSF), representing 13 of the UK's 15 packaging compliance scheme operators, launched a campaign called Keep Packaging Recycling Working.
• The British Retail Consortium and Food and Drink Federation have proposed folding Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs) into the UK's Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme.
• PSF says USD 127m (GBP 95m) in PRN revenue last year was committed to new UK recycling infrastructure and capacity.
• PSF chair George Atkinson said removing PRNs without a viable alternative risks destabilising financial flows into waste management.
• The dispute follows Defra measures reducing 2026 packaging recycling obligations for plastic, steel and wood after a PRN shortage.
• The debate is taking place ahead of the UK Budget.

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