The UK has established a “Producer Responsibility” regime which implements the
Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/EC, amended by EC Directives
1882/2003, 2004/12, and 2005/20, and EC Regulation 219/2009/EC). Producer
Responsibility is a way of implementing the "polluter pays" principle and makes producers (i.e. businesses that manufacture, import and sell certain products) responsible for ensuring a proportion of their products are recycled and recovered once they have reached the end of their life. Producer Responsibility regulations also encourage the minimisation of waste from these products, promote their re-use, and set targets for the recycling and recovery of waste materials.