SUP packaging – what producers need to know

A liquid carton for drinking yogurt, a single-serving dip container, a liquid carton for a juice drink and a plastic bag for snack vegetables – all of these are classified as SUP packaging.

For many packaging producers, SUP fees are an annual cost alongside other producer responsibility fees. However, there is a broader objective behind these fees: to reduce littering caused by single-use plastics, promote a circular economy and shift costs arising from products’ environmental impacts to producers.

What is SUP packaging?

SUP packaging refers to certain single-use food and beverage packaging defined in EU legislation. It is part of a broader group of SUP products, which also includes balloons, wet wipes, filtered tobacco products and fishing gear containing plastic.

SUP products are often thought of as products made entirely of plastic. In reality, even a small amount of plastic may be enough for a product to fall within the scope of SUP regulation. For example, a paperboard beverage cup or liquid carton may be classified as SUP packaging.

SUP Directive aims to prevent environmental harm

The Single-Use Plastics (SUP) Directive (2019/904/EU) was adopted by the European Union in 2019 to reduce environmental harm caused by single-use plastic products. Its aim is to prevent plastic litter from entering seas and other natural environments while promoting a circular economy and efficient use of materials.

Producers are responsible for clean-up costs

SUP Directive extended producer responsibility to cover the collection and clean-up costs for certain SUP products. For packaging producers, this applies to SUP packaging. Producers contribute to collection and clean-up costs caused by their packaging.

Producers must arrange waste management for SUP packaging and pay related costs to municipalities. Companies that manufacture, import or package SUP products are considered producers of these products.

The easiest way to fulfill clean-up cost obligations is to join a packaging producer organization. A producer organization handles producer responsibility obligations defined in Finnish waste legislation on behalf of its members, including responsibility for clean-up costs.

SUP packaging data is reported annually

Producers report quantities of SUP packaging placed on the market to their producer organization annually. SUP fees are also determined based on this data.

SUP fees are always invoiced retrospectively once a year, after data for the previous calendar year has been reported and verified.

Other obligations for producers and producer organizations

SUP Directive also sets other obligations for producers. For example, packaging must comply with certain design requirements, such as tethered caps on beverage containers.

It is also important to note that SUP Directive completely prohibits certain products from being placed on the market. Plastic cotton buds, single-use cutlery, and balloon stems, for example, are among products that are completely banned.

Producer organizations are also required to commission a composition studies on behalf of producers. These studies examine the composition of collected waste and litter from public areas, in cooperation with municipalities.

You can read more about SUP Directive here.