For years, a company's responsibility ended the moment a product left the factory and reached the shelf. Under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) model, that responsibility no longer stops at the point of sale — it now follows the product and its packaging well after a consumer has finished using them.

For many businesses, particularly manufacturers, importers, and users of packaging, 2026 is the year to review EPR obligations, both to stay compliant with local regulations and to keep pace with rising sustainability expectations from customers in Vietnam and abroad.

So what is EPR, exactly? Which businesses are required to comply? And how will packaging need to change going forward? BMP Group put together this guide to give you a clear, practical answer.

What is EPR? And How Did Extended Producer Responsibility Begin?

The Background

The global economy has traditionally run on a linear model — "extract, produce, consume, dispose." Under this model, once a product was sold and used, responsibility for the resulting waste fell almost entirely on consumers and local authorities. As packaging waste in particular has piled up, this approach has placed growing strain on collection systems, recycling infrastructure, and the environment.

It was this exact problem that gave rise to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) — a policy concept designed to change how businesses think about a product's entire lifecycle.

Rather than ending once a product reaches the market, EPR extends manufacturer and importer accountability into the collection, recycling, or treatment of products after consumer use. It is now considered one of the key policy tools for advancing the circular economy and reducing waste generation.

What Does EPR Mean?

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), EPR is an environmental policy under which producers are held responsible for the impact of their products across the full product lifecycle, particularly at the post-consumer stage.

In practical terms, EPR requires that a business not only makes a product, but also takes responsibility for how that product and its packaging will be collected, recycled, or treated once their useful life ends.

For businesses, EPR is not simply a legal requirement — it is also a driver for:

• Designing products and packaging that are easier to recycle
• Reducing the use of hard-to-process materials
• Increasing the share of recycled content in products
• Optimizing resource costs over the long term
• Contributing to a circular economy

From Linear Economy to Circular Economy

To understand EPR's role, it helps to look at how the underlying economic model has shifted.

The Linear Economy Model

In the traditional model, a product's life typically follows a single chain:

Raw material extraction → Production → Distribution → Consumption → Disposal

Once a product becomes waste, most of it is landfilled or incinerated — a process that loses reusable resources and adds ongoing pressure on the environment.

The Circular Economy Model

Unlike the linear model, a circular economy is built around retaining the value of materials for as long as possible, through:

• Designing for recyclability
• Post-use collection
• Recycling into new raw materials
• Returning materials to the production cycle

In this model, waste is no longer treated as an “endpoint,” but becomes a resource for a new lifecycle.

EPR is the mechanism that makes this shift practical — by requiring businesses to take an active role in waste management rather than focusing solely on production.

Packaging Sits at the Center of EPR

Among all the product categories covered by EPR, packaging draws particular attention.

That is because packaging appears in nearly every industry — food, beverage, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, household chemicals, animal feed, e-commerce, and more. It is also one of the largest sources of daily waste generation.

Under an EPR framework, packaging is no longer judged only on appearance or product protection. It is also assessed on:

• Whether it can be collected easily after use
• Whether it can be recycled with current technology
• Whether its material composition complicates the recycling process
• Whether the recycled material can re-enter a new product lifecycle

These questions are already reshaping how businesses around the world design and select packaging.

EPR Is Not Just a Responsibility — It Is an Opportunity

From a business perspective, EPR is often viewed purely as a compliance obligation. In practice, many international companies treat it as a catalyst for innovation. Investing in recyclable packaging design, material optimization, or sustainable inputs does more than satisfy legal requirements — it builds a competitive edge across global supply chains.

As consumers and major brands increasingly favor products with a lower environmental footprint, EPR is shifting from a compliance checkbox to a core part of corporate sustainability strategy.

Why Is EPR Becoming a Global Trend?

Having covered what EPR is, it is worth looking at how it became a worldwide policy trend. Roughly two decades ago, EPR was applied mainly in a handful of developed economies. Today, it is one of the most widely adopted environmental policies globally.

This shift is driven by three main pressures: rising packaging waste, tighter greenhouse gas targets, and the global push toward a circular economy.

Rising Pressure from Packaging Waste

Packaging plays a critical role in protecting products and extending shelf life. But as e-commerce and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) have grown, so has the volume of packaging waste generated after use.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the world generates more than 400 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, with packaging accounting for a significant share of that total. Without effective collection and recycling systems, most of this waste ends up landfilled, incinerated, or leaked into the natural environment.

This has pushed many countries to move from “treating waste after it is created” to “designing products to reduce waste from the start” — and EPR is the policy tool that makes this shift possible.

EPR as the Foundation of the Circular Economy

Unlike policies that focus only on waste treatment, EPR directly shapes how products are designed. When businesses are held accountable for packaging after use, they tend to:

• Reduce the number of materials used
• Limit complex, hard-to-recycle structures
• Prioritize highly recyclable materials
• Increase the share of recycled content
• Design packaging compatible with existing collection and recycling systems

As a result, EPR does more than address environmental issues — it drives innovation in packaging design and manufacturing.

More Countries Are Making EPR Mandatory

Dozens of countries and territories now operate EPR programs, at varying levels of maturity.

1. EU

The EU is widely regarded as the frontrunner in EPR policy. Its regulations on packaging and packaging waste are designed to improve recyclability, reduce unnecessary packaging, and increase the use of recycled materials in products. This work forms part of the European Green Deal, which aims to make Europe climate-neutral by 2050.

2. Japan

Japan adopted EPR relatively early, building it around a system of sorting and recycling across multiple product categories. Businesses are encouraged to design for recyclability and to coordinate with collection operators to improve recycling performance nationwide.

3. South Korea

South Korea has implemented EPR since the early 2000s across packaging, electronics, and consumer products. The policy has helped raise recycling rates and reduce the volume of waste sent to landfill.

4. North America

In Canada and a growing number of U.S. states, EPR is being extended to more product and packaging categories, easing the financial burden on local governments while encouraging businesses to invest in sustainable design.

5. Vietnam

In Vietnam, EPR is no longer a voluntary ESG activity. It is a legal obligation tied to products, packaging, market volumes, recycling plans, documentation, and reporting.

Decree No. 110/2026/ND-CP sets out detailed rules on the recycling responsibilities for products and packaging, and on waste-treatment obligations for manufacturers and importers. The decree was issued on 1 April 2026 and took effect on 25 May 2026. Specifically:

Under Decree 110/2026/ND-CP, EPR applies to organizations and individuals that manufacture or import products and packaging subject to recycling responsibilities or to collection and waste-treatment responsibilities.

Your business should review its EPR obligations if it falls into one of the following groups:

• Manufacturers of goods with packaging on the EPR list that are placed on the Vietnamese market
• Importers of goods with commercial packaging subject to recycling or waste-treatment responsibilities
• Businesses placing products subject to mandatory recycling on the market
• Businesses placing products subject to mandatory collection and waste treatment on the market
• Brand owners or businesses responsible for placing products and packaging on the Vietnamese market

What Does EPR Mean for Businesses in Vietnam, and Who Should Review Their Obligations in 2026?

If your business falls into any of the categories below, reviewing your EPR obligations now is worth prioritizing:

• Food and beverage producers or importers
• Cosmetics and household chemical manufacturers
• Pharmaceutical and medical device companies
• Animal feed and pet food producers
• FMCG manufacturers
• E-commerce businesses with their own private-label brands
• Importers of goods with packaging placed on the Vietnamese market

How Do Businesses Meet Their EPR Obligations?

Businesses currently have two main routes to choose from:

1. Self-Organized Recycling

A business organizes recycling directly, or partners with a qualified recycling operator, to collect, sort, and recycle its products and packaging at the required rate. This route tends to suit larger businesses that already have supply-chain management systems or post-use collection programs in place.

2. Financial Contribution to Vietnam's Environmental Protection Fund

This is the option most businesses currently choose. Instead of organizing recycling directly, a business meets its obligation through a financial contribution, and the state coordinates recycling activities through licensed operators. Whichever route a business chooses, it still needs to accurately identify which products and packaging fall within scope, and prepare complete documentation and data in line with regulatory requirements.

Why Should Businesses Review Their EPR Obligations Now?

Many businesses still treat EPR as a matter for the legal or environmental department alone. In practice, EPR now touches far more of the business than that.

Product and Packaging Design

Packaging that is difficult to recycle, or that relies on multiple material layers, adds cost and limits a company's ability to meet circular-economy requirements. Designs built for recyclability, by contrast, create a lasting advantage.

Supply Chain

A growing number of international brands now require suppliers to demonstrate their environmental and sustainability performance. Packaging has become one of the criteria used to evaluate and select partners.

Exports

Markets such as the European Union, Japan, and South Korea are tightening requirements related to packaging and environmental responsibility. Preparing early helps businesses reduce risk as they expand into these markets.

ESG Strategy

EPR is also part of a company's broader sustainability roadmap. Acting on it proactively does more than meet legal requirements — it strengthens brand credibility with customers, investors, and partners. In a green-economy environment that keeps gaining momentum, EPR is as much a competitiveness question as it is a compliance question.

What Should Businesses Prepare to Meet EPR Requirements?

1. Determine Whether Your Business Is in Scope

Start by reviewing the products and packaging your business manufactures or imports to determine whether they fall under EPR. This foundational step helps prevent errors later in the compliance process.

2. Audit and Assess Your Current Packaging

Cataloguing material types, packaging structures, and volumes gives your business a clear picture of how well it currently meets recycling requirements and forms the basis for a future improvement plan.

3. Work with Your Packaging Supplier

Your packaging supplier plays a key role in this transition. Topics worth discussing include:

• Recyclability of current packaging
• Material structure
• Ways to reduce virgin plastic use
• Options for transitioning to mono-material packaging
• Certifications covering material origin and sustainability

Close coordination between a business and its supplier makes this transition considerably smoother.

4. Design Packaging for “Design for Recycling”

One of the clearest trends today is Design for Recycling (DfR) — designing packaging from the outset to be easier to collect and recycle. This can include:

• Reducing the number of material layers
• Limiting combinations of materials that are difficult to separate
• Prioritizing mono-material structures
• Optimizing packaging size and weight
• Using materials with strong recyclability

These changes do more than help meet EPR requirements — they also reduce emissions and lower costs over the long term.

5. Track Regulatory Developments and Global Trends

EPR policy is still evolving, both in Vietnam and internationally. Businesses should keep up with new regulations, export market requirements, and sustainable packaging trends so they can plan their investments accordingly. Preparing early allows a business to stay proactive, rather than scrambling to adapt once new rules take effect.

BMP Group — A Partner for Your Sustainable Packaging Transition

As regulation intensifies worldwide and ESG becomes an increasingly important criterion across global supply chains, choosing a packaging partner with genuine consulting and sustainable development capabilities helps businesses stay ahead of the transition.

With more than 20 years of experience in flexible packaging, BMP Group does more than supply high-quality packaging solutions — we work alongside customers to develop packaging structures built for recyclability, material optimization, and the sustainability standards the market now expects.

If your business is exploring Mono-Material Packaging solutions or needs guidance on packaging trends that meet EPR requirements, BMP's team of experts is ready to help you build the right solution for your product, market, and long-term growth goals.

Contact Us

To explore tailored packaging solutions for your business:

• 1416 D1 Street, Phu Nhuan Residential Area, Phuoc Long Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
• (+84) 28 66 756 588