Packaging EPR: Citeo's €2 billion warning
Uncontrolled growth of EPR contributions
For several months, Jean Hornain, CEO of Citeo, has been publicly warning about the financial drift of the Packaging EPR scheme. Press interviews, conferences, round tables: the message is clear, the economic model is close to breaking point.
The figures speak for themselves:
- €1.3 billion collected in 2024,
- €1.6 billion expected in 2025,
- And up to €2 billion in 2026, if nothing changes.
This annual increase of over 20% is due to several combined factors: increasingly complex rules, extended obligations, rising sorting, collection and treatment costs, and also stricter regulatory requirements (eco-modulation, transparency, recycling targets, etc.).
Structural strain on the EPR model
EPR is based on a simple principle: "the polluter pays". But its current application reveals a flaw: the imbalance between growing regulatory targets and the actual funding capacity of producers.
Citeo points out in particular:
- The accumulation of costly schemes (reuse funds, bonus/malus, investment in sorting centres);
- An urgent need to revise fee scales to avoid overtaxing well-designed packaging;
- A threat to medium-term economic sustainability, especially for small and medium businesses and e-commerce players.
The hidden issue: anticipating upcoming adjustments
Beyond the warning itself, this situation should push businesses to anticipate future rule changes:
- Potential revision of fee scales or modulation criteria;
- New environmental labelling or traceability obligations;
- Faster digital compliance for EPR declarations.
On 12 June 2025, the ReUse initiative, large-scale reuse, will be officially launched. This ambitious project (30 million pooled packaging units, 100 participating companies) will also add new costs to the current structure. Hence the urgent need to rebalance the EPR model.
CompliancR: manage your EPR contributions and anticipate upcoming increases
At CompliancR, we help producers deal with the regulatory and financial inflation of EPR. Our AI-based solution helps you:
- Calculate your contributions scheme by scheme, in real time;
- Simulate the impact of different modulations or fee scales;
- Manage your data flows and support your declarations in front of producer responsibility organisations (PROs);
- Anticipate upcoming reforms, by structuring your compliance today around reliable data.
EPR is changing fast, and its cost is rising sharply. CompliancR gives you the means to stay in control, technically, financially and from a regulatory standpoint.