3 Recurring Questions About EPR and the PPWR

Producer Responsibility and PPWR Set Different Requirements for Companies - but the Rules Are Closely Connected

Here are answers to three of the questions we are most frequently asked.

Many companies are currently finding it difficult to understand how the rules on packaging fit together.

In particular, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and the PPWR raise questions about which requirements apply, who is responsible, and what companies actually need to do.

1: EPR and PPWR – What Is the Difference, and What Does It Mean for Danish Companies?

In short:

• EPR concerns who pays for packaging waste where it physically becomes waste.
• PPWR concerns how packaging must be designed, documented, and placed on the market.

A Simple Rule of Thumb

EPR asks: Who is responsible for the packaging waste, and who has to pay?

PPWR asks: Does the packaging meet the technical requirements so that it can legally be placed on the EU market?

For Danish companies, this means that packaging-related work will increasingly shift from primarily being a reporting task to also becoming a compliance and documentation task.

EPR and PPWR should therefore be viewed as two interconnected, but distinct, regulatory frameworks that companies must comply with.

2: Who bears producer responsibility if a Danish trading company (A) acts on behalf of a Danish company (B), which markets products under its own name and trademark or trades in goods belonging to other companies?

Producer responsibility depends on who first makes the packaging or packaged product available on the Danish market.

“Making available” means supplying the packaging for the purpose of sale, distribution, consumption or use as part of a commercial activity.

The decisive factor is therefore which economic operator first has the packaging or packaged product supplied to the Danish market.

If trading company A merely acts on behalf of company B, responsibility will generally lie with B. If A itself receives the products first and subsequently places them into circulation, responsibility will typically lie with A.

3: How do I prepare documentation and labelling for my packaging in practice?

To ensure correct documentation and labelling, you should first clarify what role your company has in the value chain, e.g. whether you are a manufacturer, importer, distributor or supplier. Your role determines which specific requirements you must comply with.

If you are a manufacturer, or are considered a manufacturer, you must ensure that the packaging complies with the relevant PPWR requirements before it is placed on the market. This includes, among other things, preparing technical documentation and an EU Declaration of Conformity (DoC).

Together with our Nordic colleagues at Nordic PRO Solution, we have developed a guide for manufacturers, as well as a template for preparing the DoC, which Emballageretur members can access via MitRetur.