SPI Intelligence for Retail and E-commerce Packaging

Who this page is for

Grocery and general retailers with own-brand ranges, online marketplaces and direct-to-consumer sellers, fulfilment and logistics teams, and the corrugated, mailer, film and reusable-transport suppliers who serve them. Retailers face packaging rules twice: as producers of own-brand packs, and as operators of stores, warehouses and delivery networks. Online sellers face the same rules in every country they ship into.

The SPI Regulation Tracker classes its 79 rules by type. Four types carry most of the weight for retail and e-commerce.

The PPWR's 2030 rules for e-commerce and transport packaging

Regulation (EU) 2025/40, the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), has applied since 12 August 2026 (PR-EU-001). Four of its obligations reach retail and e-commerce directly, and three land on 1 January 2030.

Definitions. Empty space ratio is the share of a grouped, transport or e-commerce pack not filled by the product. E-commerce packaging is packaging used to ship products sold online to the end user. Transport packaging protects goods in handling and shipping, such as pallets, crates and outer cases.

Empty space (PR-EU-009). The 50% cap falls on whoever fills the outer pack, so fulfilment centres, contract packers and brand owners shipping in outer cases carry it. Reusable packaging is excluded, and recital 84 says operators using sales packaging as e-commerce packaging may be exempted. Until the implementing act on calculation is adopted (due by 12 February 2028), how void fill and irregular product shapes are counted is not fixed. The Commission must review the ratio by 12 February 2032.

Reuse (PR-EU-006). The 40% target applies to transport packaging and sales packaging used for transport, such as pallets, crates, boxes and wraps in logistics; grouped packaging carries 10%. The EUR-Lex summary also says large retailers must endeavour to devote 10% of sales area to refill stations from 2030. Member States may exempt operators for renewable five-year periods, and there are exemptions for micro-enterprises and some cardboard packaging (recitals 92 and 95). Spain adds a national 20% target for reusable commercial and industrial packaging by weight in 2030 and 30% in 2035 (PR-ES-002).

EPR registration: the first exposure for online sellers

Definition. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) makes the producer pay for collecting and recycling packaging placed on a market. For own-brand goods the retailer is usually the producer; for marketplaces and distance sellers, the rules decide who registers.

Three points stand out. Germany’s ZSVR says there is no exemption from the authorised-representative duty for foreign sellers shipping directly to German end users, and the EU Omnibus proposal to suspend the duty covers only EU-established producers and was not adopted on 13 October 2026; the Legislative Observatory lists an indicative plenary vote on 19 October 2026 (PR-EU-012). Ontario and Quebec name marketplace facilitators and transactional websites as obligated parties, so a platform can become the producer when the brand holder is not in Canada (PR-CA-003, PR-CA-006). In India, CPCB treats online platforms, marketplaces, supermarkets and retail chains as brand owners for plastic packaging EPR (PR-IN-001).

In the UK, PackUK’s illustrative 2026-27 plastic fees are £415, £455 and £545 per tonne for green, amber and red recyclability ratings, against £190, £210 and £250 for paper and board (PR-GB-003). These are illustrative, and PackUK’s operational plan targets the year 2 notice of liability by the end of November 2026.

What shipping materials pay: paper and board versus plastic film

For e-commerce the main material choice is between corrugated boxes, paper mailers and plastic film mailers. Within each euro-zone scheme in the SPI EPR & Plastic Tax Calculator, plastic film pays more per tonne than paper and board.

The same pattern holds in North America, in each scheme’s own currency. Circular Action Alliance charges USD 176.37 per tonne for corrugated cardboard in both Oregon and Colorado, against USD 947.99 (Oregon) and USD 1,058.22 (Colorado) for HDPE and LDPE film. Recycle BC charges CAD 0.60 per kg for corrugated cardboard against CAD 1.84 per kg for plastic film. For a fuller comparison across four schemes, see EPR fees per tonne in 2026.

Stores, deposit return and bags

Retailers selling drinks become part of deposit return systems. In England and Northern Ireland, retailers selling in-scope drinks charge the deposit from 1 October 2027, and grocery retailers host return points unless exempt; small urban grocery retailers under 100 m2 are exempt from the return point duty (PR-GB-004). Scotland’s retailer and return point registration provisions have applied since 1 July 2025, ahead of the same 1 October 2027 start (PR-GB-005). In Poland, shops over 200 m2 selling covered drinks act as return points (PR-PL-001); in Portugal, shops of 400 m2 or more take back all covered packaging and those of 50 to 400 m2 take back what they sell (PR-PT-001). By 1 January 2029, every EU Member State must separately collect 90% of single-use plastic and metal beverage containers up to three litres (PR-EU-007).

Carrier bag rules are the oldest retail packaging rules in the tracker. Kenya has banned plastic carrier and flat bags since 28 August 2017 (PR-KE-001). India requires plastic carry bags of at least 120 microns from 31 December 2022 (PR-IN-004). Canada banned the sale of plastic checkout bags from 20 December 2023 (PR-CA-001). China’s Opinion No. 80 restricts non-degradable plastic bags in malls, supermarkets and pharmacies by city tier, and in express delivery outlets nationwide by the end of 2025 (PR-CN-001). China also puts packaging duties on carriers: a 2021 Ministry of Transport order requires delivery firms to choose boxes by weight and size, limit tape and minimise layers, void space and filler, and to notify contract customers in writing (PR-CN-002).

From 1 January 2030, the PPWR also bars very lightweight plastic carrier bags (with hygiene and loose moist food exceptions) and plastic packaging for pre-packed fresh fruit and vegetables under 1.5 kg (PR-EU-008). See PPWR 2030 format restrictions.

Key dates for retail and e-commerce packaging

The dates below combine tracker rule dates with the Commission implementing acts that set how the 2030 rules are measured.

What nine retailers and marketplaces have committed to

The SPI Buyers Database lists nine retail and e-commerce companies among its 42 brand owners and retailers, which together publish 179 packaging targets. Each target is quoted from the company’s own report; status is SPI’s reading of the reported figure against the company’s own goal, and SPI does not audit these figures.

Grocery retail. Tesco reports 99% of UK Own Brand packaging recyclable by weight in 2025/26, 87% at kerbside, narrowly missing 100% by 2025. Carrefour reports 67.2% of own-brand packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable against 100% by 2025, and 24.0% recycled material against 30%, but met its EU Code of Conduct pledges: 22,873 tonnes of packaging removed since 2017 and 2,459 reusable packaging solutions. Lidl and Kaufland cut own-brand plastic by 36% versus 2017 against 30%, and reached 26% recycled material against 25%. Ahold Delhaize cut own-brand primary virgin plastic by 10.9% versus 2021 against 5%. ALDI UK reports a plastic packaging footprint of 124,940 tonnes for 2023, 90% of it own-label primary packaging.

General merchandise. Walmart reports 64.3% of global private-brand packaging recyclable, reusable or industrially compostable (fiscal 2026) against 100% by 2025, 10.7% post-consumer recycled content globally against 17%, and virgin plastic 4.12% above its 2020 baseline against a 15% cut. Target reports 41% of owned-brand plastic packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable against 100% by 2035, and met its goal to explore five reuse programmes a year early.

E-commerce. Amazon reports 27% of shipments using single-use plastic delivery packaging in 2025, 73% of North American shipments recyclable in household streams, and 5.4 million metric tons of packaging avoided since 2015, with no numeric targets stated. Alibaba’s Cainiao reports about 169,000 tons of packaging materials reduced and nearly 36 million cardboard boxes recycled and reused in fiscal 2025.

How SPI builds this page

SPI Regulation Tracker. Each of the 79 rules in 25 jurisdictions has its official source, dates, last-checked date and an SPI note on scope, actions and open points. The 13 October 2026 check re-read 56 tracker records against their official sources and updated 46. SPI EPR & Plastic Tax Calculator. 216 published rate rows in 14 markets, each in its scheme’s own currency; we never add or rank fees across currencies. UK PackUK year 2 fees are illustrative, and Germany and Ontario are not included because no public fee table exists. SPI Buyers Database. Company-reported targets with links; no contacts, volumes, suppliers or specifications.

Limitations. PPWR detail rests on official summaries and recitals because the operative articles did not load during SPI’s checks. SPI does not give legal or tax advice, act as an authorised representative, file registrations, or test or certify packaging; we can point you to a qualified provider. See methodology and corrections.

Where this fits in your decision

• Understand: list EPR and design rules for every market you ship to in the SPI Regulation Tracker, with alerts.
• Evaluate: compare fees for boxes and mailers in the SPI EPR & Plastic Tax Calculator.
• Discover: compare retailers’ own-brand targets in the SPI Buyers Database.
• Decide and implement: SPI Consulting turns the same data into a market-by-market plan.

Related pages: Food and beverage for own-brand food packs and deposit return, and the Industries overview.

When you need more than the data

The SPI Trackers are free. Three SPI Consulting services fit retail and e-commerce work:

• Packaging Regulatory Intelligence: EPR, deposit, bag, empty space and labelling rules mapped to your markets, with an obligation map, exposure scenarios and a deadline calendar.
• Packaging Procurement & Supplier Intelligence: suppliers of reusable transport packaging and right-sized boxes, with public capability evidence and a comparison matrix.
• Sustainable Packaging Strategy: material, reuse and redesign options for own-brand ranges, with a peer benchmark.

Work is scoped as a Briefing, Sprint, Programme or Retainer, with pricing on request. To discuss a market or fulfilment question, send an enquiry.