The NFU has submitted its response to the government’s consultation on the potential introduction of a new mandatory certification for plastic packaging.
The new requirement for mandatory certification will apply to mechanically recycled plastic packaging in order for businesses to claim an exemption from PPT (Plastic Packaging Tax).
You can keep track of the NFU’s progress on this consultation on this page.
10 August 2026
The NFU has submitted its response to the consultation on planned changes to how businesses apply for PPT relief.
The NFU has warned that the changes, which are an attempt to reduce the potential for claims on packaging that does not meet requirements, must not introduce a new layer of red tape or hit supplies.
The NFU said it backed measures to ensure that recycled content claims for plastic packaging are accurate, and food safety is upheld.
However, it said any certification scheme must avoid disruption to packaging availability and must not pass any financial or administrative burden on to primary producers, who have very little ability recoup costs and limited resources.
Any measures should be designed to work effectively across international supply chains, the NFU added, and should recognise equivalent overseas certification schemes, where they provide comparable assurance.
Check back in on this page as we provide more details on our response.
29 July 2026
this survey is now closed.
30 June 2026
We would be keen to hear from any members for whom this consultation may be relevant.
In particular, it would be helpful to understand their experiences of claiming exemptions from the PPT, as well as any current views or priorities across the supply chain in relation to these exemptions.
This survey will take around 5 to 8 minutes to complete.
The NFU survey is now closed.
18 May 2026
The HMRC-led consultation will run for 12 weeks until 10 August 2026.
This consultation considers whether mandating certification would be a proportionate and effective way for businesses to evidence recycled content when claiming relief from PPT.
It explores whether introducing a certification requirement could improve the robustness of recycled plastic claims and help address risks of error or fraud (anecdotally found with imported plastic packaging), alongside wider industry concerns.
This may affect our members within the dairy, egg and horticulture sectors who pack their own produce using plastic packaging.
The consultation specifically seeks views on the prevalence of fraud, impacts on businesses to which this requirement would apply, how the requirement should operate in practice and potential timings for implementation.
In principle the NFU would be supportive of a certification scheme which addresses these points, whilst ensuring food safety is paramount. However, we would not wish for this to cause any issues in availability of packaging, nor pass any additional cost and administrative burden onto our members.
This page was first published on 30 June 2026. It was updated on 11 August 2026.
Once you have submitted your query someone from NFU CallFirst will contact you. If needed, your query will then be passed to the appropriate NFU policy team.