Short answer: Plain-English definitions of the packaging EPR terms you will meet in state laws, PRO guidance and reporting templates. Definitions are general; each state defines its terms in its own law and regulations.
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
- A policy approach that makes producers financially, and sometimes operationally, responsible for the end-of-life management of their products or packaging. Packaging EPR applies this to packaging and paper. See packaging EPR compliance.
- Producer
- The company a state law makes responsible for covered packaging. Each state defines it through a hierarchy that usually starts with the brand owner. See laws by state.
- Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO)
- An organization approved to run an EPR program on behalf of producers: registering them, collecting reports and fees, and funding recycling. Circular Action Alliance is the PRO in several states.
- Covered material
- The packaging and paper a program applies to, as defined in each state's law and regulations. Scope differs by state.
- Packaging component
- An individual physical part of a package, such as a bottle, cap, label, carton or film. EPR reporting is built from component-level data. See packaging data.
- Primary packaging
- Packaging in direct contact with the product or forming the unit a consumer buys.
- Secondary packaging
- Packaging that groups primary units for sale or display, such as a multipack carton.
- Tertiary packaging
- Transport packaging used to move goods through distribution, such as corrugated cases and stretch wrap.
- Packaging bill of materials (BOM)
- A structured list of every packaging component for a SKU, with material, format, weight and quantity per unit. Different from an item master.
- Eco-modulation
- Adjusting EPR fees up or down based on packaging attributes such as recyclability, recycled content or reuse. See EPR fees.
- Recyclability
- Whether packaging can be collected, sorted and recycled in practice under a program's criteria. States define and determine recyclability differently.
- Source reduction
- Reducing the amount of packaging material used, for example by lightweighting or eliminating components. California's SB 54 sets source-reduction targets for single-use plastic. See the California guide.
- De minimis exemption
- An exemption for very small quantities, either for producers below a threshold or for small packaging components, depending on the state.
- Reporting year
- The year in which a producer submits a report to a program.
- Data year
- The period whose sales and packaging data a report covers, often the prior calendar year.
- Program year
- The period a program's fees and operations apply to. Reporting year, data year and program year can all differ.