UK Publishes FAQ on PPWR Regulation

Targeted audience	UK manufacturers, UK importers and their upstream providers
Products concerned	Packaging, packaged products
Key industries concerned with this insight	Packaging
Application date	12 August 2026
Main content or requirements	On 27 August 2026, the UK published an FAQ on the implementation progress of the EU PPWR Regulation (EU) 2025/40 in the UK. The FAQ has clarified the UK’s interpretation of many questions
Reference	Link 1 Link 2 Link 3

On 27 August 2026, the UK published a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document on the implementation progress of the EU PPWR Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste in the UK.

The key highlights related to common packaging manufacturers and importers are as follows:

1. The requirements in EU PPWR Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (under the Windsor Framework) have applied to UK Northern Ireland (NI) on 12 August 2026. The UK plans to launch a formal consultation in early 2027 on whether to align with the regulation and to what extent in Great Britain (GB), especially on aspects of the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) and packaging waste-sorting labels.
2. The packaging and packaged products in Northern Ireland (NI) remain under the UK extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) scheme.
3. Besides the EU PPWR Regulation (EU) 2025/40, the sustainability claims related to packaging shall comply with the unfair commercial practices provisions of the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA) and related guidance, the Green Claims Code (GCC).
4. The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) is responsible for implementing provisions for enforcement of food contact requirements, e.g., per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) restrictions in food-contact packaging.
5. The PFAS tests are recommended to be carried out by laboratories holding ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. Risk-based approaches to testing are not endorsed or recommended.
6. The EU PPWR Regulation (EU) 2025/40 has not required the waste-sorting label to be in digital form. QR codes are optional. The UK Government is unlikely to mandate the use of digital packaging waste-sorting labelling.

For more details, please refer to the document.

Intertek China Hardlines labs will continue to monitor the implementation of the PPWR in the UK and its subsequent implementing regulations and rules, to provide you with testing services and technical support in compliance with the UK packaging regulation and standards.

Intertek One-stop PPWR solution

Intertek is deeply aware of the challenges that the implementation of the new PPWR regulation brings to businesses. With our comprehensive capabilities covering the entire compliance chain, we are here to safeguard your pan-European operations，including but not limited to:

• Heavy metals testing
• Total F screening, PFAS testing
• Labeling and marking review
• DoC check
• Technical Documentation (TD) check
• Recyclability assessment
• Packaging minimization assessment
• Void space assessment
• Compostability (biodegradability) audit and testing
• Recycled content verification

• Public training courses
• Customized regulatory training

• Testing according to ISTA
• Testing according to REACH Annex XVII, SVHC
• Food contact material testing

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Yana Yang：0755 26020126
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