Hospitality Leaders Condemn ‘Flawed’ Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme

Leading hospitality operators have united in opposition to the UK Government’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme, arguing that the policy unfairly penalises businesses and will ultimately burden consumers with higher costs.

A coalition of industry leaders, including Azzurri Group, Burger King UK, Fuller’s, Marston’s, Punch Pubs & Co, St Austell Brewery, Stonegate Group, and Wells & Co, has signed an open letter calling for an exemption for packaging supplied directly to hospitality businesses.

The letter, penned by UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls and addressed to Environment Secretary Steve Reed, highlights fundamental flaws in the scheme’s design. It warns that, in its current form, EPR will impose millions in additional costs on the hospitality sector by forcing businesses to “pay twice” for recycling.

The EPR framework, which came into force on 1 January 2024, requires producers to assume financial and operational responsibility for their packaging waste. From April 2025, businesses will be expected to cover the full cost of managing packaging waste, shifting the burden from taxpayers to producers. However, hospitality leaders argue that the scheme’s classification of packaging waste is both inaccurate and unjust.

‘Hospitality Venues Are Being Double-Charged’

A key point of contention is categorising beer and wine bottles as household waste despite the fact that they never leave hospitality premises. Under the EPR scheme, suppliers are charged for packaging disposal, passing these costs onto hospitality businesses that are already paying commercial recycling fees.

“The fundamental design of the EPR scheme is flawed,” the letter states. “Hospitality businesses are being double-charged. They are paying an EPR levy on products incorrectly classified as household waste while covering the cost of commercial recycling for those same products.”

The industry coalition argues that this misclassification creates an unnecessary financial burden on hospitality operators, who will have no choice but to pass these costs onto customers.

“There is a significant price premium associated with purchasing on-premises due to property and staffing costs,” the letter continues. “Packaging supplied directly from manufacturers to hospitality businesses—particularly those operating closed-loop recycling systems—should not be subject to EPR charges.”

Growing Financial Pressure on Hospitality

The letter warns that the financial impact of the EPR scheme is already being felt. Medium-sized hospitality businesses face increases of up to £750 per year, while smaller venues are seeing additional costs of around £350. Larger pubs are expected to shoulder hikes of approximately £2,000 annually—on top of their existing commercial waste disposal contracts.

The industry leaders are calling for urgent ministerial intervention to amend regulations, ensuring that packaging supplied directly to hospitality businesses and wholesalers is exempt from the EPR scheme.

“The consequences of this flawed scheme are now hitting the hospitality sector hard,” the letter states. “Bills from suppliers are landing with significant increases due to EPR charges, and hospitality businesses will be forced to pass at least some of these additional costs onto their customers.”

Government Defends Waste Reforms

In response, a spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) defended the policy, stating:

“We are committed to cracking down on waste and boosting recycling, with the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme playing a vital role in our packaging reforms. All councils will use this funding to deliver improved community waste collection services.

“The Government will continue to work closely with businesses on our packaging reforms, which are set to create 21,000 jobs and stimulate over £10 billion in recycling investment over the next decade.”

Despite the Government’s assurances, the hospitality industry remains deeply concerned about the unintended consequences of the EPR scheme. With mounting financial pressure, businesses are urging policymakers to rethink the approach before it leads to further economic strain on operators and consumers alike.