Flexible Plastic Packaging: What UK Producers Need to Know

August 5th, 2026

Recycling flexible plastic packaging has never been simple – but the regulatory picture just got more complicated.

Flexible plastic packaging is widely used across UK supply chains, but it has historically been one of the most difficult packaging materials to collect and recycle at scale. That is now changing, but not at the same pace across all four nations. Under England’s Simpler Recycling programme, mandatory kerbside collection of plastic films and bags has been delayed from 31 March 2027 to 1 April 2030. Wales, however, is pressing ahead with its original timeline, with mandatory household kerbside collections of flexible plastics expected by spring 2027.

For UK producers and importers, this divergence matters. The compliance landscape is already evolving, and businesses placing flexible packaging on the UK market need to understand how changes to collection timelines, recyclability assessments, reporting requirements and future packaging EPR fees could affect their obligations and costs.

Flexible Plastic Packaging and UK Packaging EPR: What producers need to know

The UK's packaging reforms have a number of interrelated strands. Here's a summary:

pEPR establishes the system for producers to pay for the costs of managing packaging waste from households, resulting in Household Packaging Waste Disposal (HPWD) fees.
Fees are material specific and the scheme now modulates them according to the recyclability of the packaging component.
The Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) assesses recyclability, ensuring a consistent interpretation.
The RAM rates packaging components as Red, Amber or Green.
For a Green assessment, a packaging material has to be collected at the kerbside by 75% of local authorities.
It is estimated that fewer than 20% of the almost 400 UK local authorities currently do so.
Flexible plastics collections have not achieved this level, so they can currently only be rated Red (or Amber if the producer is contributing to a specific collection initiative which meets certain conditions).
Simpler Recycling establishes a framework and timetable to bring consistency to the materials collected from households in England through local authority kerbside collections.
England has now delayed the date when authorities must collect plastic film and plastic bags as part of kerbside plastic recycling from 31 March 2027 to 1 April 2030.
Wales has maintained its original timeline, with mandatory flexible plastic kerbside collections expected of its 22 local authorities by spring 2027.
The maths dictates that even 100% implementation in Wales will not move the needle on the 75% threshold; significant progress across England will be needed.
However, experience in Wales – which leads not just the UK but, is one of the top performing nations on recycling globally will undoubtedly provide invaluable experience of successful approaches to the collection of flexible plastics from households for all UK councils to learn from.

Flexible Plastic Packaging: Key Compliance Challenges for Producers

Flexible plastic has long been the problem child of the packaging world. It is lightweight, functional and cost-effective, but notoriously difficult to sort, collect and reprocess. For producers, that creates a compliance challenge that goes far beyond simply registering with a scheme.

The core difficulties businesses face right now include:

Material complexity: flexible packaging often combines multiple polymers, adhesives and coatings. Meeting the material specifications required for circularity, particularly for food-contact applications, demands rigorous supply chain oversight.
Traceability gaps: demonstrating that packaging is genuinely recyclable, and that a business can prove it has been recycled, requires end-to-end data. Many businesses do not yet have the systems in place to capture this.
Regulatory uncertainty: the rules around flexible plastics are still evolving. England's delay to 2030 adds a further layer of complexity for producers planning ahead.
Nation-of-sale reporting: packaging EPR requires producers to report the nation (England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland) where their packaging is sold. However, it is important to note that this does not currently feed in to HPWD fees under EPR.
Food-contact requirements: circularity for food-contact flexible packaging introduces additional complexity around contamination, material grades and approved recycling processes.

What FlexCircular Means for Flexible Packaging Producers

The FlexCircular initiative, led by the Flexible Plastic Fund (FPF), represents a significant step forward for the UK's flexible packaging infrastructure. The FlexCollect household collection pilots have already demonstrated strong consumer appetite for change, with 89% of participating households reporting satisfaction with the service. That level of engagement signals that the infrastructure challenge is solvable, provided the right investment and coordination follows.

England's delay to 2030 does not remove the direction of travel. It extends the runway. The underlying policy intent remains in place, and the FlexCircular infrastructure work continues.

It is worth being clear on one point: the kerbside collection obligation sits with local authorities, not producers directly. What changes for producers is the EPR fee structure that flows from these materials entering the collection system at scale.

As mentioned above, flexible plastics can currently only be rated Red (or Amber if the producer is contributing to a specific collection initiative which meets certain conditions). This is because for a Green assessment a packaging material has to be collected by 75% of local authorities, and flexible plastics collections have not achieved this level yet. That said, progress in Wales from 2027 onwards should build the foundations for more rapid future progress across the UK.

How better EPR data can reduce risk and improve decision-making

Change is on the horizon. Achieving a Green RAM rating for flexible plastics could become possible in the foreseeable future, and this opens up the possibility of lower HPWD fees.

Producers who invest in understanding how their flexible packaging contributes to their EPR obligations now are building something valuable: a clear, auditable picture of their packaging flows, material types and supply chain data. In practice, that is extremely useful for procurement decisions, supplier negotiations and sustainability reporting, and it positions businesses well for whatever the regulatory timeline ultimately delivers.

At ERP UK, our view is straightforward. Compliance done well is a foundation for better business decisions and more cost-effective ways of working. With that in mind, simplifying the complexity, centralising the data and building a process that works year after year turns a regulatory obligation into a genuine operational advantage.

How ERP UK supports Flexible Plastic Packaging producers

ERP UK helps producers of flexible packaging navigate the full scope of their packaging EPR obligations, from initial registration through to accurate data submission and ongoing scheme management.

For businesses dealing with flexible plastics specifically, that means support with:

Identifying which packaging materials fall within scope and how to classify them correctly.
Building the data collection processes needed for accurate nation-of-sale reporting across all four UK nations.
Understanding food-contact packaging requirements and what circularity standards apply.

Preparing for the changes expected from 2030, including how kerbside collection will affect EPR fee modelling and reporting obligations.

We work as a long-term compliance partner, not a one-off service provider. Our goal is to make the process straightforward, so that producers can focus on their business while we manage the complexity of an evolving regulatory environment.

Navigating Flexible Plastic Packaging with an expert partner

Flexible plastic packaging is moving steadily up the compliance agenda. England's delay to April 2030 gives producers more time, but Wales's spring 2027 deadline is live, and the underlying direction of travel across all four nations remains unchanged. Because of this, producers need a clear understanding of how these changes could affect their reporting obligations, RAM ratings and future EPR costs.

ERP UK helps businesses turn complex packaging regulations into a straightforward compliance process. From packaging data collection and nation-of-sale reporting to EPR registration, fee modelling and ongoing regulatory support, we help producers stay compliant, reduce risk and prepare confidently for future changes.

As part of the Landbell Group, operating across more than 30 countries, we combine international regulatory expertise with practical support tailored to UK producers. Today, we support over 700 businesses across packaging, WEEE and battery compliance, helping them navigate changing regulations with confidence.

Want to understand your Flexible Plastic Packaging position?

Whether you're reviewing your packaging data, assessing future EPR costs or preparing for the changes ahead in Wales and England, our experts can help.