Packaging tax will raise price of many everyday items, say UK firms

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said it was in talks with the glass industry to discuss ‘workable approaches’. Photograph: Alan Keith Beastall/Alamy

A new packaging tax to fund recycling will push up the price of many products including soft drinks, beer, kitchenware and small appliances such as kettles and toasters, companies have warned.

Pev Manners, the managing director of the cordial maker Belvoir Farm, said the preliminary cost for glass in the extended producer responsibility (EPR) for packaging was “nuts”. The brand would have to pass on the levy as the fees would wipe out its annual profits, he said.