Placed on Market
The point at which packaging or a packaged product is first made available in the UK market. This triggers EPR obligations and determines when a producer becomes responsible for that packaging.
Placed on market (POM) refers to the point at which packaged goods or packaging materials are first made available on the UK market. This is the trigger point for EPR obligations.
POM occurs when:
- Packaged goods are sold or supplied for the first time in the UK
- Packaging is supplied to another business for filling
- Packaged goods are imported into the UK
- Online sales make packaged goods available to UK consumers
The POM concept is important because it determines which producer in the supply chain bears the obligation. Only packaging that is actually placed on the UK market is reportable — packaging produced but exported is not. For RPD reporting, producers report the tonnage of packaging they placed on the market during each reporting period. Timing matters — packaging manufactured in one period but sold in another should be reported in the period it was first supplied. Obligated tonnage is calculated on a POM basis.
Related Terms
Extended Producer Responsibility
A policy approach where producers bear significant responsibility for the enviro...
Importer
A business that brings packaged goods or empty packaging into the UK from abroad...
Report Packaging Data (RPD)
The UK government's digital service through which obligated producers submit the...
Reporting Period
The defined time window for which packaging data must be collected and submitted...
Obligated Tonnage
The total weight of packaging a producer handles annually, used to determine whe...
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