FAQs about producer responsibility

Producer responsibility means the producer’s obligation to organise the reuse, recycling and other waste management of products, and to cover the costs thereof. Under the Waste Act, responsibility lies with companies that place tyres of motor vehicles, cars, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries and accumulators, paper and packaging on the Finnish market, regardless of how they are sold.

Producer responsibility for packaging applies to companies that pack in Finland, import packed products or sell their products to Finland through distance sales.

In Finland, producer responsibility for packaging is implemented through a common system where producer organisations are responsible for the practical implementation of producer responsibility requirements, such as collection and recycling. Packaging recycling fees are invoiced from companies with producer responsibility.

Producer responsibility for packaging concerns:

1. A Finnish packer* or a foreign company’s Finnish branch**, which packs products for the Finnish market
2. A Finnish importer* or a foreign company’s Finnish branch**, which operates as an importer of packed products to the Finnish market
3. A foreign operator, established in another country than Finland and sells packed products directly to users in Finland through distance sales

For the following packaging the producer with producer responsibility is the manufacturer or importer of the packaging from 1.1.2024:

• Service packaging: a packaging that is used to pack food and other products for consumers directly at the point of sale.
• Grower packaging: a packaging that is used to pack unprocessed agricultural and horticultural products.

AND

the company has a total turnover of at least 1 M€. The turnover limit of 1 million euros is removed 1.1.2024 and from then on producer responsibility obliges all companies that fulfil the above criteria.

*the company has a Finnish business ID and is domiciled in Finland

**the company has a permanent establishment in Finland and is registered as a branch in the Trade Register maintained by the National Board of Patents and Registration

Yes, online shops are included in the scope of producer responsibility. Finnish online shops must join the producer responsibility scheme in Finland if they supply packed products to the Finnish market. Foreign online shops must register if they distance sell products directly to users in Finland

A restaurant has producer responsibility for its packaging, if it imports or manufactures the packaging it uses for packing food or other products directly to consumers at the point of sale.

A restaurant does not have producer responsibility for its packaging from 1.1.2024, if it buys the packaging it uses to pack products directly to consumers at the point of sale, from a Finnish importer or manufacturer.

Packaging is defined in Government Decree 1029/2021. A packaging preserves and protects the product, enables its handling and transport from the producer to the consumer or other user. A packaging provides information about the product and facilitates its presentation in the shop. All elements that reinforce or are attached to the packaging, such as labels, are packaging.

Examples of packaging include sales packaging, transport packaging and multi-pack.

A packaging is reported by the packaging producer.

The producer of a packaging is the company that has packed (in-house or by a sub-contractor) its products in Finland for the Finnish market or has imported a packed product. A distance seller reports the packaging that ends up directly to users in Finland.

• An exception to the above is service and grower packaging. The producer of a service and grower packaging is from 1.1.2024 onwards its manufacturer or importer. Service packaging is used for packing food and other products directly to consumers at the point of sale and grower packaging is used to pack unprocessed agricultural and horticulture products.

The company that owns the product at the time of packing is responsible for reporting.

A company is responsible for its packaging even if it outsources packing to another company. This means that if, for example, a company rents pallets or buys a packing service from another company, the owner of the packed products reports these pallets.

Packaging that is used in internal transfers within a company is not reported. An internal transfer means that a packed product moves in Finland within the same company (one business ID).

Producer responsibility applies both to packaging reaching the end user and to packaging used for transport (both B2B and B2C packaging). Producer responsibility applies to all packaging and packaging materials used for storing, protecting, handling, transporting and displaying the product. The packaging for dangerous goods is also covered by producer responsibility and the use is reported on the declaration form.

The packaging of products imported for the company’s own use must also be reported.

The volume of packaging does not affect the reporting obligation. Packaging data is reported even if the quantity is small.

Deposit packaging is not reported to Rinki.

Rinki Extranet is the place where company packaging data is reported and in addition, it contains useful material to support packaging data reporting.

The company contact person can update the contact persons as well as company information on the Extranet. The company is responsible for keeping contact and billing information up to date.

Yes, the importer is responsible for the imported packaging. It is the importer’s responsibility to determine the weights of the packaging, even if they do not see the packaging that is delivered directly to the customer.

The import column is used to record the packaging of all products imported to Finland and imported for the company’s own use. Packed products sold to users in Finland through distance sales are also reported as imports.

Export is not reported. Only packaging remaining on the Finnish market is reported.

If the same packaging is sold to consumers and to businesses, it is reported as a consumer packaging. If the packaging is a larger packaging aimed primarily at for example catering establishments, it is a B2B packaging.

B2B packaging comprises the packaging that ends up to companies along with products. B2B packaging includes sales packaging as well as grouped and transport packaging for products intended for companies. B2B packaging also includes such grouped and transport packaging for consumer products that does not go to consumers with the product.

Consumer packaging includes sales packaging for consumer products and some grouped packaging, for example. Consumer packaging also includes packaging used at the point of sale for packing products, such as paper and plastic bags, boxes, single-use containers, etc., that consumers take with them.

The plastic container and metal frame of an IBC are reported as separate packaging even if tools are required to separate them. The plastic container is reported on the plastic tab on the form in the B2B packaging section, and the metal frame on the metal tab in the B2B packaging section.

Reusable polypropene tote bags are products, not packaging. They are not reported on the packaging declaration form.

Biodegradable plastic packaging and packaging made from bio-based plastics are plastic packaging and are reported as plastic packaging.

Yes, packaging material is reported only once in the supply chain.

No packaging should be subject to a recycling fee twice.

However, the reuse of reusable packaging is reported separately for statistical purposes. For example, if a company imports a reusable wooden pallet, the pallet is reported at import and if the pallet is then reused in Finland, the reuse is be reported in the column for reuse.

The reuse of packaging intended for single use is not reported.

The Åland Islands have their own producer responsibility system. Packaging imported from the Åland Islands is reported in the Import column. Exporting is not reported.

Imported packaging is always considered as new when placed on the Finnish market even though it has already been used in the country of origin. If packaging remains on the Finnish market, it should be entered in the import column. Packaging should only be declared under reuse in Finland after its first time of use or when an imported packaging is reused in Finland.

The general rule for reporting is that packaging is declared by the company that owns the product at the time of packing. The owner of packed products is most often the manufacturer. Private label products are retail chain brands that are sold under the brand name of the company that purchases the product and not under the manufacturer’s name. The owner of private label products packed by a manufacturer may also be the retail chain depending on the contract made between the companies. Companies are required to provide an explanation to Rinki which company reports the packaging.

No they cannot. Rinki eco take-back points only accept household packaging waste. Companies can arrange for packaging waste to be transported to the producers’ collection terminals, which accept packaging waste sorted in accordance with the producer organisations’ instructions, free of charge.