ORLANDO, FLA. — A patchwork of regulations in five states requiring food manufacturers to pay fees to manage the recycling of their products is growing closer to implementation. Meanwhile, a handful of other states are considering similar regulations, and snack companies need to be ready for them.

“This issue is no longer a nice-to-do.  It's now a must-do,” said Mark Bescher, founder of Legacy Public Policy and SNAC International consultant, who spoke at SNAXPO25, held March 30-April 1 in Orlando, Fla.

Bescher explained Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and how states are implementing it. EPR holds producers — rather than municipalities and taxpayers —financially and operationally responsible for end-of-life management of their products and packaging.

EPR is run by a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO), which works with state governments to set fees, collect funds from producers and provide funding and management of collection, sorting and processing of packaging. Currently the only PRO working with paper and packaging in the United States is Circular Action Alliance (CAA). 

Food producers are expected to register with the national CAA as well as the state subsidiary, and those that fail to do so can be fined and barred from selling products in those states.

“This is very common in Europe and in different parts of the world, but it’s brand new in the United States so they’re still trying to figure out what kind of actions they can take,” Bescher said of the states implementing these policies.

California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota and Oregon have all passed EPR rules and are preparing to implement them. EPR proposals are under consideration in several other states, and they are most likely to pass this year in Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Washington, Bescher said.

Bescher shared a few upcoming deadlines for the states that have implemented EPR regulations. For instance, producers were supposed to be registered by November of 2024 and submit their first report on packaging sold in Oregon to CAA by March 31 of this year. The state is expected to announce 2025 fee levels in June with the fee payments required in July.

“I do want to highlight that California, which is the biggest market in the country, is going to require reporting and registration here very shortly,” he said.

However, California Gov. Gavin Newsome, recognizing inflation’s impact on consumers and food producers and how these EPR regulations could drive up prices further, agreed that the state would put some of the implementation dates on hold, although groups are fighting any delays.

Bescher touched on a variety of business scenarios and producing partnerships to highlight which businesses selling products in Oregon would be responsible for fees, including products sold at retail and online as well as foods produced in the United States and abroad. Every state is implementing its own plan, which means following the reporting requirements could be complex.

For companies needing more information on this topic, SNAC International offers resources for its members on its website. Companies can also go to CAA’s website, which provides resources for producers, or they can attend a producer onboarding session. Bescher also said that producers can find more information from The Recycling Partnership and AMERIPEN.