Packaging is defined in the Regulations as ' …all products made of any materials of any nature to be used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and preservation of goods…from the producer to the user or consumer…'
This applies where the product is one of the following:
• "Primary" or "Sales" packaging is packaging which forms a sales unit for the user or final consumer, for example, a box containing soap powder

The main packaging materials are paper/fibreboard, plastic, glass, steel and aluminium. Wood packaging is also included as is packaging made from other materials e.g. hessian, jute ceramics etc.
All aspects of Packaging including Regulations, Obligations, Reprocessing and Export are the responsibility of the Environment & Heritage Service (EHS) part of the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland.

Businesses are obligated if:
· they have an annual turnover of greater than 2 million per annum AND
· they handle more than 50 tonnes of packaging annually AND
· they perform at least one of the activities specified below.
Obligated activities within the 'Packaging chain' are:
• Manufacture of packaging raw materials e.g. the manufacture of plastic powder flakes
• Converting materials into packaging e.g. converting plastic granules into rolls of film
• Using packaging to pack products e.g stacking goods onto a pallet and wrapping them in film
• Selling packaging to the final consumer e.g. selling a product in a plastic tray
• Importing of packaging or packaging materials into the United Kingdom

The obligations are based on:
· How much packaging you handled over the previous year;
· What activities you are involved in;
· National recovery and recycling targets.
Obligated businesses must:
· Register with EHS and submit data on packaging handled
· Recover and recycle specified tonnages of packaging waste**
· Certify that their obligations have been met
· If their main activity is that of seller, inform customers of their role in increasing recovery and recycling as well as the return, collection and recovery systems available to them.
** An obligated business may not generate sufficient recoverable packaging waste to satisfy its obligation, however evidence in the form of PRN’S and PERN’S can be provided by Allclear Environmental to demonstrate that an equivalent amount of packaging waste was recovered or recycled.