Canada PROs unite to align packaging design

Five Canadian producer responsibility organizations are joining forces to provide clear, consistent guidelines to make packaging design recyclable, with plastics guidance anchored in the Association of Plastic Recyclers Design Guide. 

The initiative will help create a harmonized national framework for ecodesign, to provide clear guidance to packaging producers that market their goods in Canada, according to a Nov. 17 press release. By better matching product packaging with current and developing sorting and recycling infrastructure, harmonized guidelines can help increase overall material recovery rates and meet regulation requirements for extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs for packaging, the release said.

The organizations plan to complete the harmonized guidelines by the end of 2026. 

The PROs – Circular Materials, Éco Entreprises Québec (EEQ), Multi-Material Stewardship Manitoba, SK Recycles and Recycle BC – administer EPR programs for packaging in most Canadian provinces and territories, in varying stages of implementation and maturity. 

The new nationally harmonized guidelines will build on packaging guidelines developed originally by EEQ, toward three main strategies:

• Reduction: optimize the amount of product packaging that is essential and sufficient for product function and consumer use
• Procurement: encourage producers to choose environmentally responsible suppliers and work with them to create a more transparent and traceable supply chain that prioritizes the use of recycled, renewable and certified materials
• Recyclability: encourage producers to design packaging and paper products with maximum compatibility with existing and developing sorting and recycling infrastructure

EEQ launched its first packaging ecodesign and recyclability guidelines in October 2024, with an update in July 2025. EEQ worked closely with APR’s technical team to align guidelines, and the new harmonization means PROs across Canada will use the APR Design Guide as the basis of their recommendations for designing plastic packaging for recyclability, APR said. 

Most provinces in Canada have adopted EPR laws, which cover 99.9% of Canadians, according to APR. Nearly all provinces are transitioning from a shared-cost model to a program fully funded and implemented by producers, with the transition being rolled out in phases throughout 2025-2027 based on timelines in each province.

The first, British Columbia, implemented packaging EPR in 2014, while Alberta and Quebec began rollouts in early 2025. And by the end of 2025, Ontario plans to complete its transition from a “blue box” program for collecting printed paper and packaging to a producer responsibility model. In addition, a federal plastics registry will track plastics in the Canadian economy, from manufacturing and importing to disposal and recycling. 

In January, Recycle BC and SK Recycles – formerly known as Multi-Material Stewardship Western – will consolidate into a single legal entity, to streamline organizational structure and increase efficiency, according to a September announcement.  

In 2023 the PROs announced a nationally integrated approach to the country’s transition to EPR for packaging. 

The five PROs said in a joint statement, “The national harmonization of ecodesign and recyclability guidelines reflects a shared vision to support producers in their ecodesign efforts and help mitigate material recycling challenges at different sorting and processing stages. This collaboration will lay the groundwork for a national approach that will better support the recycling of packaging and paper across the Canadian marketplace – ultimately enhancing environmental performance and building a more circular economy.”

In another move to create globally aligned guidelines for plastic packaging design for recyclability, APR in October published translations of its Design Guide in Spanish and Mandarin, in collaboration with Mexico’s ECOCE and with several Chinese groups. APR owns Resource Recycling, Inc., publisher of Resource Recycling and Plastics Recycling Update.

A version of this story appeared in Resource Recycling on Nov. 17.