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The clock is ticking for companies to educate themselves about Extended Producer Responsibility (ERP) laws and make changes to their operations to comply. In and across borders we are seeing the increased buy-in for sustainable change - EPR regulations are leading this charge. In this blog, we will dive into EPR and the role it plays for retailers specifically.
What is Extended Producer Responsibility for Retailers?
At its core, EPR holds producers and retailers accountable for the entire lifecycle of the products and packaging they create. The goal is to encourage producers and retailers to develop more sustainable products from the beginning, reducing overall waste and creating a more circular economy.
Traditionally consumers were responsible for the end-of-life disposal of products and packaging but EPR flips this script - holding producers almost entirely accountable. In light of this retailers must work cross-functionally with internal and external teams to manage waste and track environmental impacts across the supply chain and beyond.
As a retailer, these laws must be taken seriously. No matter the scale and quantity of products produced retailers must reconsider the environmental impacts of them all - from the time products are sold to when they are collected.
How Do EPR Laws Change Packaging?
EPR laws are changing the landscape of packaging around the world. By attaching financial consequences to products and packaging, recyclable and compostable materials are becoming increasingly popular.
At the core of many EPR programs is setting new targets for recyclability rates. As a result, many retailers should consider how they can make their products and packaging more recyclable. Although recyclability isn't the only way to make packaging more sustainable. Companies may also explore reusable and refillable packaging or lightweight to reduce overall waste created.
By taking a new approach to packaging design, materials, and waste management companies are getting creative when it comes to packaging. For companies taking a forward-thinking approach, this is an exciting time in the world of packaging - full of innovation and creativity.
4 Challenges Retailers Face in Achieving EPR Compliance
With retailers managing extensive product SKUs and vendor networks shifting toward EPR compliance can feel impossible. It requires cross-functional collaboration and alignment across all stakeholders which can feel extremely challenging for many organizations.
1. Data Collection Across a Diverse Vendor Base
With data spread across a multitude of vendor and supplier networks as well as internal teams, data collection can be one of the biggest hurdles when it comes to EPR compliance. Collecting packaging data can become a logistical nightmare, especially for organizations that lack standardized data formats, have poor vendor relationships, or have no centralized data management system.
2. Integration of Data with Existing Systems
After packaging data is consolidated and updated the next step is integrating it into the existing systems. In the absence of standardization, this process can be long and tedious, with a large margin of error. Formatting data to ensure that it adequately meets EPR standards across states and countries adds an even greater level of complexity. This process requires a lot of time and resources that many retail companies do not have.
3. Regulatory Deadlines and Multistate Compliance
EPR regulations are constantly changing and growing in and across borders. For retailers, this means meeting multiple reporting deadlines and requirements while staying up to date with any changes. Missing these deadlines or changes can lead to fines or penalties, furthering the dreaded costs of EPR compliance.
4. Vendor Onboarding and Ongoing Management
Even after EPR laws are put into place ongoing management and regulatory checks must be done to ensure that everyone is aligned. Retailers must all ensure that onboarded vendors are using correct data formats and understand proper EPR reporting so that requirements continue to be met.
Navigating Retailer EPR Compliance With A Spec-First Approach
While these challenges do pose some obstacles for most retailers, facing them head-on is critical for avoiding the consequences of non-compliance down the line. With the right tools and actionable steps, retailers can streamline their EPR efforts and drive productive change across their organizations.
Centralized Data Collection and Management
As mentioned before, disconnected data poses a huge threat to retailers looking to comply with EPR. Because EPR requires companies to report in specific ways, organizations must have access to and a clear understanding of their data.
With centralized Specification Data Management (SDM) Systems like Specright organizations can standardize and update packaging data across all vendors and suppliers. As new suppliers are onboarded the ability to easily gather and consolidate new data is critical. By utilizing one united platform companies can automate data upkeep, reducing manual workload and empowering teams to make more sustainable things.
Seamless Integration with Existing Systems
Unlike other systems, Specright can easily integrate data from your existing systems. This not only makes the transition to EPR-ready data much easier but also supports new product development and overall sustainable change.
Specright easily allows packaging data to be processed and formatted accurately for EPR expectations - with the flexibility to make changes as needed. By avoiding manual inputs companies can save time and resources, while reducing the stressors typically associated with EPR implementation.
Meeting Regulatory Deadlines Efficiently
With Specright retailers can manage changing regulatory deadlines and avoid missing any important dates. Features such as compliance tracking tools, automated reports, and internal reminders, ensure that best practices are in place when it comes to EPR.
Instead of EPR regulations sneaking up on you and your teams, be proactive about upcoming dates and deadlines by using purpose-built data management systems like Specright.
Streamlined Vendor Onboarding
Retailers are constantly working with new vendors and aligning these new partners with EPR expectations can be difficult. Specright simplifies this process by offering simplified workflows where new packaging data is collected.
In doing so your team can ensure that all vendors, new and old, are ready to comply with any approaching EPR regulations.
The Path To EPR Compliance: Retailers Leading The Way
Facing EPR regulations head-on is essential for embracing sustainable change. By shifting the responsibility of packaging waste and impacts away from consumers and back to producers, EPR is changing the way companies think about the products and packaging they create.
With the right tools for data and specification management, meeting EPR regulations no longer has to be intimidating. By aligning internal and external stakeholders on EPR data and reporting requirements, companies can meet deadlines, avoid fines, and maintain a positive brand image. We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again, EPR and sustainable change are no longer just a trend it's a business requirement.
How is your company going to meet rising EPR laws? Without a clear answer to this question comes many negative consequences to all your stakeholders now is the time to drive forward sustainable change.
To learn more about EPR read this blog or request a demo with our team.
