Fees and eco-modulation
Adjusting EPR fees up or down according to the environmental performance of the packaging, rewarding recyclable design and penalising problem formats.
Eco-modulation turns an EPR fee from a flat per-tonne charge into a price signal. Packaging that is easy to recover pays less; packaging that disrupts sorting or cannot be recycled pays a penalty, often a large one. Bonuses commonly apply to verified recycled content, mono-material construction and improved sortability.
The modulation criteria are jurisdiction-specific and change frequently. France and Italy have some of the most granular schedules; several US states are phasing modulation in after an initial flat-fee period. A packaging change that earns a bonus in one market can be neutral or penalised in another.
Because modulation applies at component level, meaningful modelling requires component-level data. Aggregate SKU weights cannot distinguish the PET bottle from the PVC sleeve that triggers the penalty.
A collective scheme that producers join to discharge their EPR obligations, handling registration, reporting infrastructure, fee collection and recycling contracts.
Whether packaging is actually collected, sorted and reprocessed into new material at scale, not merely whether it is theoretically recyclable.
A surcharge applied to EPR fees for packaging with recognised recyclability problems, such as dark pigments or non-separable multi-material construction.
Designing packaging so it can be collected, sorted and reprocessed at scale, and under PPWR a legal requirement graded from A to E.
Packgine resolves your packaging to component level and applies the rules of every market you sell into.