Energy and carbon
Climate change agreements and the Climate Change Levy
A climate change agreement (CCA) lets an energy-intensive site pay a reduced rate of Climate Change Levy, 92% off electricity and 89% off gas from 1 April 2026, in...
Environmental compliance for food and drink businesses
Food and drink producers are heavy users of packaging, so packaging EPR, plastic packaging tax and the 2027 deposit return scheme dominate. Food waste must be separated at workplaces in every nation, trade effluent usually needs a consent, and refrigeration brings F-gas duties.
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Guides most relevant to food and drink
Packaging and products
Deposit return scheme for drinks containers (from October 2027)
From 1 October 2027 a deposit will be added to single-use drinks containers of 150ml to 3 litres made of PET plastic, aluminium or steel across the UK, refunded when...
Permits, air and water
Environmental permits: who needs one, how to apply and what it costs
An environmental permit is the legal authorisation you need before running an activity that could pollute air, water or land, such as an industrial installation, a...
Energy and carbon
ESOS Phase 4 (Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme)
ESOS Phase 4 requires every large UK undertaking (250 or more employees, or turnover above £44 million and a balance sheet above £38 million) and its UK group to...
Permits, air and water
F-gas regulations for refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pumps
Fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases), mainly the HFC refrigerants in chillers, cold rooms, air conditioning, heat pumps and vehicle refrigeration, are controlled in...
Permits, air and water
Medium combustion plant and specified generator permits
Any boiler, engine or turbine with a rated thermal input of 1 MW or more but less than 50 MW is a medium combustion plant (MCP) and needs an environmental permit...
Packaging and products
Packaging EPR (extended producer responsibility for packaging)
Packaging EPR makes the businesses that put packaging on the UK market pay the full cost of collecting and managing it when it becomes household waste. You are...
Packaging and products
Plastic packaging tax
Plastic packaging tax is charged on finished plastic packaging components manufactured in or imported into the UK that contain less than 30% recycled plastic. The...
Energy and carbon
SECR reporting (Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting)
SECR reporting requires UK quoted companies, and unquoted companies and LLPs that exceed two of three tests (turnover over £36 million, balance sheet over £18...
Packaging and products
Single-use plastics bans, vapes, wet wipes and carrier bag charges
Each UK nation bans the supply of a list of single-use plastic items, enforced by councils and Trading Standards: plastic cutlery, plates, bowls, trays, balloon...
Reporting and management systems
UK Sustainability Reporting Standards and climate disclosures
The UK Sustainability Reporting Standards, UK SRS S1 (general sustainability) and S2 (climate), are the UK's endorsed versions of the ISSB standards, published on 25...
Energy and carbon
UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS)
The UK ETS is a cap-and-trade scheme covering power generation, energy-intensive industry with combustion plant over 20 MW, aviation and, since 1 July 2026, ships of...
Waste and resources
Waste duty of care and waste transfer notes
The waste duty of care applies to every business and organisation in the UK that produces, carries, keeps, treats or disposes of waste. You must stop waste escaping,...
Waste and resources
Waste exemptions: when you can operate without a permit
A waste exemption lets you carry out a small-scale, low-risk waste operation without an environmental permit, provided you register it and stay within its limits. In...
Permits, air and water
Trade effluent consents, water discharge permits and abstraction licences
Anything other than domestic sewage and clean rainwater that leaves your site as liquid needs permission. Trade effluent to the public sewer needs a consent from your...
Waste and resources
Workplace recycling rules: Simpler Recycling and the devolved regimes
Every UK workplace must now separate recycling and food waste from general waste, but the detail differs by nation. In England, Simpler Recycling has applied to...
Other sectors: Manufacturing, Construction and property, Retail and e-commerce, Logistics and transport, Waste and recycling, Chemicals, Hospitality, Professional services.