If your company puts (household) packaging on the Belgian market, it has to fulfil a number of legal obligations. But when exactly is your company seen as a party responsible for packaging? And as such, which legal obligations do you have to fulfil? How can Fost Plus help you with this? How much does membership cost? And how do you become a member?

When is your company seen as a party responsible for packaging?

The following companies are seen as parties responsible for packaging and therefore have to fulfil three legal obligations (take-back obligation, information obligation and prevention plan):

  • Companies that package household products or have such products packaged in Belgium in order to put them on the market under their own brand name or under a neutral brand.
  • Companies that import packaged household products or have such products imported in order to put them on the Belgian market.
  • Companies that produce or import service packaging in order to put it on the Belgian market. Service packaging is applied in the place where products or services are offered to consumers. Examples include wrapping paper, bread bags, pizza boxes and checkout bags.

If your company puts less than 300 kg of packaging on the market per year, you only need to join Fost Plus if you wish to use the Green Dot logo.

What are your legal obligations as a party responsible for packaging?

Companies that fall within the category of parties responsible for packaging have to fulfil three legal obligations:

Take-back obligation. Every year, companies have to achieve a set recycling percentage for the packaging that they put on the market.

Information obligation. Companies have to inform the Interregional Packaging Commission (IRPC) of the nature of their packaging and the recycling percentages that they have achieved.

Three-year prevention plan. Companies have to draw up a prevention plan setting out the measures that they are taking to reduce their quantity of packaging and the goals that they aim to achieve. This obligation applies for companies that put at least 300 tonnes of single-use packaging on the market annually and for companies that package products or have products packaged in Belgium with at least 100 tonnes of single-use packaging per year.

How can you fulfil your legal obligations?

Become a Fost Plus member

If you become a member of Fost Plus, we deal with the take-back and information obligations as regards your household packaging for you. You then pay an annual membership contribution which Fost Plus uses to fund the collection, sorting and recycling of your household packaging.

Fost Plus is only competent for household packaging. For industrial packaging, you can contact Valipac. If you put both household and industrial packaging on the market, you need to join both organisations. For packaging that you put on the market in other countries, you should contact the European organisations EXPRA and PRO-EUROPE.

For the prevention plan, you can contact your professional federation and the Interregional Packaging Commission (IRPC). You can draw up your prevention plan yourself or you can join a sector prevention plan.

Voor het preventieplan kan je terecht bij je beroepsfederatie en bij de Interregionale Verpakkingscommissie. Je kan je Preventieplan zelf opstellen of aansluiten bij een sectoraal preventieplan.

Once you have joined Fost Plus, you submit an annual declaration of all the packaging that you have put on the Belgian market.

 

More information about the declaration

Join Fost Plus now
 

You set up your own system

You are not obliged by law to become a member of Fost Plus. You can also opt to set up your own system. In that case, you organise the collection, sorting and recycling of your packaging yourself and send the necessary data to the Interregional Packaging Commission (IRPC) to prove that you achieve the required recycling percentages.

 

You let another company take over (part of) your declaration

In certain cases, you can let another company take over (part of) your declaration. You can do so, for example, when your company falls under the legal take-back and information obligations but does not have access to the necessary information to fulfil these obligations. In practical terms, you then give the other company a mandate to take care of (part of) your declaration.

How much does it cost?

As a member of Fost Plus, you pay an annual contribution for the collection, sorting and recycling of your household packaging. The amount depends on the type and quantity of packaging that you put on the market.

The annual contribution for your company is calculated based on the Green Dot rates. Each packaging material is allocated a Green Dot rate that reflects the actual cost of collection, sorting and recycling. The revenue that Fost Plus obtains from the sale of the materials is also taken into account.

Depending on the declaration system that you choose, the rates are applied per kg or per unit.

The minimum contribution is EUR 100. If you put obstructive packaging or Household Hazardous Waste packaging on the market, the minimum contribution is EUR 250. If you opt for payment by direct debit, you receive a discount of EUR 50.

You do not pay any contribution for reusable packaging in your declaration. If you declare solely reusable packaging, you pay the minimum contribution.

 

Consult the Green Dot rates for the various materials here

Become a Fost Plus member now

Not entirely sure whether you should become a Fost Plus member? In that case, fill in our checklist and get an answer to your question right away.

Fill in the checklist

 

Do you want to become a Fost Plus member immediately? In that case, go to the signing-up module and make your company a member. Once you have joined, a Fost Plus staff member will contact you to guide you through your first declaration.

Make your company a member of Fost Plus

 

Fost Plus has almost 5,000 members. In our member list you can find out which companies are affiliated.

Consult the list of members

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