Political, PRO and packaging leaders shared their thoughts on the direction EPR is headed, including implications for data management, sustainable design and measuring success. U.S. packaging stakeholders have learned a lot this past year since...

The Flexible Packaging Association (FPA), the leading advocate for the U.S. flexible packaging industry, opposes proposed packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation in New York, A.1749/S.1464. While some positive and negative changes have recently been...

In March 2026, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed specific actions for reversing the 2024 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP), a program under the Clean Air Act that regulates emissions of...

Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) is clearly against any delay or renegotiation of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). Instead, the association is calling for swift, practical guidelines for implementation to ensure compliance with...

Extended Producer Responsibility is moving from concept to compliance, and quickly. During a recent webinar hosted by the Pet Sustainability Coalition titled, “EPR for Pet Brands: Navigating the 2026 Multi-State Deadline,” Lowell Huffman, director of...

Consumers and regulators remain wary of plastics — especially single-use formats — with some calling for their outright elimination. But what would that actually mean at the checkout line? A new study suggests the cost...

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) recently named Circular Action Alliance (CAA) as the producer responsibility organization (PRO) to lead the implementation of the state’s extended producer responsibility (EPR) law. As the designated PRO, CAA...

A year into the “Liberation Day” tariffs, which ultimately imposed a 10% baseline tariff on nearly all imports, packaging companies and their customers are still waiting for the dust to settle, and in some cases...

An Oregon judge offered new clarity this past week on who is temporarily exempt from enforcement of the state’s extended producer responsibility for packaging law, and imposed limits on other groups that want to join...

The Department of Health and Human Services will is introducing a first-of-its-kind program to study microplastics and the effect they have on the human body, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced. Kennedy said the...

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is rapidly reshaping packaging decisions across the pet food industry, but speakers at the Pet Summit during Global Pet Expo emphasized that companies should view the policy framework as more than...

California’s SB 54 (Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act) is among the most stringent Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policies globally. While CalRecycle is still refining the final regulations, the statutory performance targets remain....

The EPA’s intent to update the OSWI rule is the latest step in an ongoing debate over how the federal government should categorize pyrolysis under air emissions regulations that currently cover small MSW combustors and...

A coalition of farmers, food producers, restaurants, packaging manufacturers and grocers has filed a federal lawsuit challenging California’s Senate Bill 343, calling the law an unconstitutional restriction on free speech that will reduce recycling, confuse...

After the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors secured a preliminary injunction in February, groups representing the paper industry, grocers and other businesses want in. There’s been much speculation that NAW’s action could lead to follow-ons in...

So far this year, the U.S. International Trade Commission has published multiple determinations related to packaging products or materials. These come on top of the commission’s December determination that thermoformed molded fiber products imported from...

There’s a conversation happening in boardrooms and in c-suites right now. It goes something like this: "Did you hear about the EPR lawsuit in Oregon? If they win, we won’t have to do EPR, so...

In this exclusive interview, Zoe Heller, director of CalRecycle, explains how California’s SB 54 packaging EPR law and SB 343 labeling rules will shape packaging design, recyclability claims, and compliance for brands selling into the...

It’s official: Circular Action Alliance will serve as the producer responsibility organization in Washington as the state works to launch its extended producer responsibility for packaging law that passed in 2025. Producers have until July...

As Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) deadlines approach, companies are reexamining flexible packaging design to ensure it can be processed by today’s recycling infrastructure. The message from industry leaders at the Plastics Recycling Conference last week...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is the primary federal authority for ensuring worker safety across U.S. industries, including printing. Over the past decade, OSHA’s priorities have been shaped by a series of political...

In 2025, the Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) partnered with John Dunham & Associates, a leading economic consulting firm, to assess the economic contributions of the U.S. flexible packaging industry. The resulting comprehensive economic impact study...

The National Association of Wholesaler Distributors (NAW) has secured a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of Oregon’s EPR law after arguing that it imposes burdensome fees and taxes on distributors. NAW is a trade association that...

The U.S. packaging industry is entering a defining period. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs are taking hold across multiple states, setting new expectations for how packaging is designed, collected, and recycled. For flexible packaging manufacturers...

Packaging is vital in ensuring the preservation, safe transport, and secure storage of products within the global market. Beyond mere containment, packaging protects items from physical damage, contamination, and degradation, thereby extending their shelf life...

Oregon was the first state to launch a packaging EPR program, which charge producers fees to cover recycling costs. Shortly after that milestone in 2025, NAW filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for...

Mass balance is a widely recognized accounting method used in various ways, including as a way to certify the percentage of recycled content in sustainable packaging materials. As eco-modulation fees start to add up for...

Extended producer responsibility continues to dominate packaging policy discussions. While major changes to policy trends might be hard to spot year to year, industry groups see opportunities to take some lessons from the earliest examples...