RECOUP investigation reveals fraudulent recycled content claims on imported packaging are undermining the UK's plastic packaging tax, threatening domestic recycling operations.
The recent report warns that packaging manufacturers are facing unfair competition from cheaper imports that falsely declare recycled content to avoid the 223.69 per tonne tax. RECOUP surveyed 15 plastic packaging manufacturers, with three reporting direct harm to their operations as a result of fraudulent claims.
The Plastic Packaging Tax, introduced in April 2022, was designed to incentivise the use of recycled material in manufacturing, aiming to stimulate investment in recycling infrastructure and improve plastic waste processing. However, RECOUP argues that weak verification systems are allowing virgin plastic to be sold under false recycled content claims, undermining both the tax and the industry it was meant to support.
The report highlights technically impossible claims as proof of fraud. Stretch film is being marketed with 300 per cent stretchability while claiming high recycled content, a performance only achievable with 100 per cent virgin material, according to RECOUP's analysis.
Industry sources told RECOUP that incorporating 30 per cent recycled content into UK-produced stretch film increases costs by more than 10 per cent, adding several hundred pounds per tonne. Legitimate manufacturers are therefore competing against fraudulent imports that avoid both the tax burden and the...
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