A leading industry body has accused Labour of shattering the UK glass sector with a controversial new packaging tax.
British Glass is warning that festive favourites like mulled wine, pickled onions, cranberry sauce, wine and bottled beer are expected to rocket in price next year.
In April, Labour is introducing a Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR) scheme on manufactures, which will add extra cost to heavier packaging such as glass.
The association has said the new tax on food and drink packaging will be around 50 times higher for glass beverages (based on a 330ml bottle) than other materials – leaving brands with no choice but to increase prices for products packaged in glass or move to other less recyclable materials such as plastic.
A leading industry body has accused the Government of shattering the UK glass sector with a controversial new packaging tax
GB NEWS
This means an 18-pack of bottled beer could cost shoppers an extra £1 when the new glass tax, VAT, and supply chain costs are added.
Dr Nick Kirk, the technical director of British Glass, told GB News: “Brands, retailers and even the consumer will face higher fees in glass.
“For example, if you take a 500ml beer bottle that potentially could have 10p or 15p of extra cost put onto it because of this EPR tax.
“So this could push consumers away from glass into less recyclable materials, all based on weight. We believe that EPR should be really driving recyclability.
“So encouraging those materials that are recyclable not encourages to go to the lowest cost option [of less recyclable plastic and metals].”
The UK glass sector has a high recycling rate, at 74.2 per cent, which is one of the best rates for any packaging material. Glass is 100 per cent recyclable and can be re-melted without losing quality.
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Dave Dalton, the Chief Executive of British Glass, has warned this could be the ‘last Christmas’ for UK manufactured glass and popular products that are traditionally packaged in glass.
He said: “British Glass supports the principle of pEPR and that packaging waste collection and recycling needs to be reformed to deliver a circular economy for the UK but this scheme is a hammer blow for the industry, manufacturers and consumers.
“We are at risk of losing our food and manufacturing heritage and increasing plastic pollution. We expect to see price hikes for consumers who are already feeling the pinch at the till.”
Brewers are also warning that British ales are at risk from the packaging tax on glass bottles.
Yorkshire family owned Timothy Taylor’s brewery in Keighley produce more than 144,000 pints of beer a day. They mainly supply beer to pubs, but also sell bottled beer in the grocery industry.
Tim Dewey is the Chief Executive Officer at Timothy Taylor’s, he told GB News: “The net cost of council recycling is moving to us [producers]. Government just seem to think that business is this bottomless pit.
“The assumption initially was almost that we would absorb these costs. Well, I’m sorry, but you know, a bottled beer business is a pretty low margin business. There’s just no way that producers in the industry can absorb that.”
With additional costs for businesses incurred by the Budget, there are fears for the future of the pub industry.
“I know from our own pub, Woolly Sheep, up in Skipton, our costs are going to go up by over £60,000 just for that one pub between National Insurance, living wage and also the reduction in the rates discount that we get,” said Tim Dewey, Chief Executive Officer at Timothy Taylor’s.
“Now again, that’s a healthy pub, but there are loads of pubs run by husband and wives or business partners that are marginal.
“Next summer into the autumn you’re going to see a lot of pubs closing and that’s all for the people running the business. But it impacts us because that’s fewer outlets for us to kind of put forward our award winning ales.”
British Glass is warning that festive favourites like mulled wine, pickled onions, cranberry sauce, wine and bottled beer are expected to rocket in price next year
GB NEWS
The Government’s own analysis published recently found implementing the tax could increase yearly expenditure by up to £56 per household.
The Government say its the new packaging tax will create a £10 billion pound investment in the recycling sector over the next decade and see packaging producers, rather than the taxpayer, cover the costs of managing waste.
A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman told GB News: “We are committed to cracking down on waste as we move towards a circular economy.
“Extended producer responsibility for packaging, including glass, is a vital first step for our packaging reforms which will create 21,000 jobs and stimulate more than £10billion investment in the recycling sector over the next decade.”
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