Extended
Producer
Responsibility
Verified Manufacturing Advantages of
GO-GREEN GO-POLYPRO
Typical process scrap
25–35%
15%
Resin efficiency
standard
Higher
Est. CO2e per tray
higher
Lower
Extended Producer Responsibility, or EPR, is a policy framework that shifts the cost and responsibility for managing packaging at end-of-life from municipalities and taxpayers to the companies that produce and sell packaged goods.
EPR programs are funded through fees paid to a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO). The PRO collects those fees and directs them to recycling infrastructure, municipal collection programs, and program administration. Fees are calculated based on the weight and material type of packaging a company introduces into a given state each year and are adjusted up or down based on how recyclable or sustainable that packaging is.
Seven US states have enacted packaging EPR laws. Three programs are already issuing fees (Oregon since July 2025, Colorado since January 2026). The rest are in development, with timelines ranging from 2027 to 2030. An additional ten or more states are actively considering legislation.
Extended Producer Responsibility. The policy framework holding brand owners financially responsible for end-of-life packaging management.
Any company that manufactures, imports, or licenses a product sold to consumers in covered packaging. Food and beverage brands are almost always producers.
Producer Responsibility Organization. The non-profit entity (often industry-funded) that collects fees from producers and funds recycling programs. CAA is the PRO in CO, OR, and ME.
Circular Action Alliance. The industry-backed PRO selected to run programs in Colorado, Oregon, and Maine.
The packaging types subject to EPR fees: plastic, glass, metal, paper, and other packaging materials sold to consumers in a given state.
Fee adjustments that reward sustainable packaging choices with lower fees (bonuses) and penalize hard-to-recycle materials with higher fees (maluses).
Minimum Recyclable List. Colorado’s list of packaging materials accepted for recycling by at least 60% of state residents. MRL materials qualify for lower fees.
Additional Materials List. Materials accepted by some but not all programs. Producers using AML materials pay higher fees.
An upward fee adjustment applied to packaging that disrupts recycling or is made from low-recyclability materials.
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