Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) in 5 key points

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a French environmental policy aimed at making producers responsible for the end-of-life of their products.

This mechanism, based on the European polluter-pays principle, requires manufacturers, importers, and distributors to finance and organize the collection, treatment, and recycling of products placed on the market.

This principle encourages companies to design more durable, repairable, and recyclable products, while taking responsibility for their environmental impact from design to end of life.

The Extended Producer Responsibility regime in 5 key points:

1. Producer Responsibility

Within the framework of Extended Producer Responsibility, a "producer" means any natural or legal person who manufactures, imports, or sells products under their own brand in France, thus including manufacturers, importers, distributors, and market participants.

"Production" is therefore understood in a broad sense as the development, manufacture, handling, processing, sale or import of products; only resellers are in principle excluded from this liability regime.

These producers must finance and organize the management of waste from their products, which includes the collection, treatment, and recycling of products when they become waste.

2. Sectors subject to Extended Producer Responsibility

EPR applies to several categories of products; today there are 20 sectors subject to this responsibility, including:

• Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE)
• Packaging
• Batteries and Accumulators
• Medicines
• Textiles, Household Linens and Footwear (TLC)
• Furniture
• Chemical Products
• …

In the coming years, it is already planned that other sectors will integrate this liability regime.

3. Producer Obligations

To comply with EPR, producers have several obligations:

• Membership and Role of Eco-Organizations

Producers must register with an approved eco-organization for each category of products they market. These eco-organizations, approved by the State, are responsible for the operational management of waste. They coordinate the collection, sorting, recycling, and recovery of waste on behalf of producers. By joining these eco-organizations, producers pay eco-contributions, which are used to finance waste management activities.

• Financial Contribution to Eco-Organizations

Producers pay a financial contribution to approved eco-organizations to finance waste management activities. These eco-contributions, often integrated into the selling price of products, are proportional to the volume or weight of products placed on the market. Their amount is modulated according to environmental performance criteria.

• Individual Management

As an alternative to joining an eco-organization, some producers may choose to manage the collection and recycling of their products themselves. This individual management method requires state authorization and a demonstration of compliance with the same standards as those of eco-organizations. It is generally too costly for producers to organize their responsibility individually, so the choice to finance an eco-organization has become common practice.

• Consumer Information

Producers must inform consumers about collection points and recycling methods for their products. This includes labeling products with clear recycling instructions. In particular, the presence of the Triman logo is mandatory, indicating that the product is recyclable and must be sorted. This logo must be accompanied by specific sorting instructions, such as the type of material and appropriate collection points. In addition, producers must provide information on the environmental qualities and characteristics of the products, such as the use of recycled materials, the recyclability of the product, and efforts to reduce hazardous substances.

• Obtaining a Unique Identifier

Producers subject to EPR must obtain a Unique Identifier (IDU) from the Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (ADEME). This identifier allows tracking and verifying producers' compliance with their obligations, as it must be included in any contractual document transmitted to the buyer (e.g., GTC) as well as on the producer's website. A producer must then have an IDU for each EPR scheme to which they are subject.

• Implementation of a prevention and eco-design plan

Producers must develop and implement a prevention and eco-design plan aimed at reducing the environmental impacts of their products. This plan includes actions to improve the durability, repairability, and recyclability of products. It involves promoting the use of recycled materials, reducing the use of hazardous substances, and designing products that are easier to disassemble. This plan must be reviewed every 5 years and include a review of the previous plan as well as the definition of objectives and actions for prevention and ecodesign to be implemented over the next 5 years.

• Annual declaration obligation

Companies subject to EPR must make an annual declaration to their eco-organization for each relevant sector. This declaration must detail the quantities of products placed on the market as well as their rate of incorporation of recycled materials, data on waste management and their flow, and all data enabling the determination of quantitative and qualitative objectives for waste prevention and management. This transparency obligation ensures that companies meet their commitments and effectively contribute to waste management.

4. Operation of Eco-Organizations

• Organization of waste collection, sorting, and treatment

Eco-organizations set up infrastructures for waste collection. This may include specific collection points, partnerships with local authorities, and awareness campaigns to encourage consumers to recycle correctly. For example, it is in this capacity that today producers of batteries or light bulbs have set up, through eco-organizations, waste collection centers inside most large retail stores. The eco-organization is then responsible for sorting, recycling, and recovering its waste, for example by integrating it into energy production.

• Reporting and Transparency

Eco-organizations must report their activities to public authorities. They publish reports detailing the volumes of waste collected, the recycling rates achieved, and the actions implemented to improve waste management.

This reporting is based on the annual declarations of producers received by the eco-organization. Thus, the eco-organization publishes every 3 years a summary of the sector's plans, accessible to the public on its website.

5. Sanctions in Case of Non-Compliance

Failure to comply with EPR obligations exposes producers to significant administrative and financial penalties.

• Specific Offenses
• A maximum administrative fine of €30,000 may be imposed by the Minister of the Environment if the company does not have a unique identifier (IDU), has not indicated this IDU in its mandatory mentions, does not contribute to an eco-organization and has not set up an individual system, or has provided incorrect information.

• Failure to affix the Triman logo and the associated sorting instruction is punishable by an administrative fine of €3,000 for an individual (including sole proprietorships) and €15,000 for a legal entity.
• Failure to comply with obligations related to information on the environmental characteristics of products is also punishable by an administrative fine of €3,000 for an individual and €15,000 for a legal entity.

• Other Offenses

In the event of non-compliance with other EPR obligations, the company concerned is notified by the Minister for the Environment of the facts alleged and the penalty incurred. The company has one month to submit its observations, in writing or orally. At the end of this period, the Minister may impose the following penalties:

• A maximum administrative fine of €1,500 for an individual or €7,500 for a legal entity, per unit or per ton of product concerned.
• A daily penalty of a maximum amount of €20,000, applicable from a date set by the decision until the regularization of the company's situation.

Environment / Renewable Energies