Extended Producer Responsibility
(EPR) laws are an increasingly
prevalent approach to addressing packaging waste. More than a compliance
requirement, they present an opportunity for brands, manufacturers and producers
to evaluate their packaging strategies and uncover significant cost savings —
while simultaneously reducing waste.
With the first data-reporting deadlines under packaging EPR laws in the United
States
having just passed, some businesses are suffering “compliance
anxiety”
and worrying about how EPR costs will impact budgeting.
EPR laws enact fees on producers based on packaging sold in given jurisdictions,
leaving some producers searching for ways to reduce fees. The more
“sustainable” a company’s
packaging, the more
likely that business will see lower EPR fees. Essentially, the policy of
eco-modulation makes
producers responsible for their own EPR fees by way of their packaging
decisions.
Here are 5 best practices that leverage packaging data to find and optimize
savings while meeting your EPR obligations.
1. Understand how EPR Fees are calculated
The foundation of discovering cost savings starts with understanding how EPR
fees are calculated. Factors influencing fees include:
-
Material type and recyclability
-
Weight and volume of packaging
-
Recycled content in materials
Action step: Gather fee schedules from regions where your company has
packaging EPR obligations.
2. Centralize your packaging data
Disorganized, siloed data makes EPR cost analysis inefficient and incomplete.
Create centralized systems that consolidate data across your supply chain. You
may want to develop a supplier interface for collecting and tracking data or you
may choose to create a template. As you’re gathering data, ensure it meets the
requirements of EPR laws to be accurate and complete.
Action step: Collect data, centralize it and promote formatting
standardizations across stakeholders.
3. Identify high-cost contributors
Not all products or packaging types contribute equally to EPR costs. Analyze
your data to identify “high-cost contributors” such as:
Action step: Pinpoint top contributing products, then take steps to reduce
high-fee materials.
4. Build predictive fee models
Predictive analytics can uncover emerging cost-saving opportunities before fee
invoices even arrive. By integrating current EPR fee structures, regions and
packaging materials into your data model, you can:
-
Forecast future fee trends
-
Anticipate cost increases or decreases based on proposed material changes
-
Plan your long-term packaging sustainability strategy
Action Step: Designate a person or team to design functional models.
5. Automate data reporting
EPR compliance reporting can be time-consuming and error prone. Automation tools
specific to packaging data can help streamline this process, ensuring accuracy
and improving insights. Use software that can:
-
Auto-generate compliance reports for specific jurisdictions
-
Track packaging changes across multiple markets
-
Provide real-time fee impacts linked to design iterations
Action step: Develop “one click” reporting systems that will save countless
staff hours.
Adopting eco-modulation best practices doesn’t just lower fees. It strengthens
consumer trust, aligns your brand with sustainability values, and positions your
business as a leader in the circular economy.
By thinking proactively, you can transform EPR compliance from a costly
obligation into an opportunity for cost savings, reduced waste and stronger
customer loyalty.
Interested in learning how RLG can support your business with packaging data
management, EPR compliance and data collection/validation? There are over 58
million SKUs in our packaging database, thanks to our decades of experience
working with top brands. We invite you to schedule a discovery call with RLG
today.
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Published Apr 4, 2025 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST