Exporter
An accredited business that ships packaging waste abroad for recycling. Exporters issue PERNs as evidence that exported waste has been recycled at compliant overseas facilities.
An exporter in the context of packaging waste is an accredited business that ships UK packaging waste to overseas reprocessing facilities. Exporters issue PERNs to prove the waste has been recycled.
Exporter requirements:
- Must be accredited by the Environment Agency
- Must comply with international waste shipment regulations
- Must verify that receiving facilities genuinely recycle the material
- Subject to audit and compliance checks
Export of packaging waste for recycling is significant in the UK — substantial volumes of plastic, paper, and other materials are shipped overseas. The regulatory framework aims to ensure this is genuine recycling rather than waste dumping. Changes in overseas market acceptance (notably China's National Sword policy) have affected export routes and PRN/PERN prices. The UK aims to increase domestic reprocessing to reduce export dependency.
Related Terms
Plastic Packaging
Packaging made from polymeric materials including PET, HDPE, PP, LDPE, PS, and P...
Packaging Recovery Note
A tradeable certificate issued by accredited reprocessors proving that a tonne o...
Packaging Export Recovery Note
A certificate proving that packaging waste exported from the UK has been recycle...
Reprocessor
An accredited facility that processes collected packaging waste into recycled ra...
Environment Agency
The environmental regulator for England responsible for enforcing EPR for packag...
Put EPR terms into practice
Stop reading about compliance — start doing it. Our platform handles the complexity.
Start Your Free Trial