The CEO of Aldi UK has added his voice to calls for more collaboration between government and industry over forthcoming environmental legislation.
Giles Hurley warned rushing ahead with extended producer responsibility (EPR) plans – under which businesses will pay the cost of dealing with the packaging waste they put on the market – could add to inflationary pressure on food prices.
He also called for a UK-wide approach to introducing a deposit return scheme. He joins a number of supermarket bosses to have recently expressed concern over Scotland’s plans for what is set to be the UK’s first deposit return scheme, with a proposed implementation date of 16 August.
“DRS is in line with our strategic aims, to reduce and recycle, and we operate these systems in our European business, so we’re relatively familiar with them,” Hurley told The Grocer.
“We just want a level of clarity on how the systems are going to operate and then we can get on board.
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“There’s a level of challenge – there appear to be some elements of the system the Scottish government can’t decide in terms of collaboration with Westminster.
“The industry is on the whole understanding that we need to implement a system. The preference is that we take a UK approach because on the whole that’s simpler, more efficient, more cost-effective, which is good news for customers and for business.”
The Scottish Retail Consortium last month wrote to ministers in Scotland warning of chaos if DRS went ahead within the timeframe, thanks to “unresolved” issues including a lack of clarity over who will be exempt and confusion over how containers will be collected.
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UK environment secretary Thérèse Coffey also recently urged Scotland’s new first minister Humza Yousaf to postpone the August rollout and instead join a single scheme to launch in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in October 2025.
On EPR, Hurley said: “When I look at our pledges, this absolutely makes sense. What we need to make sure is we don’t move at a pace or in a way that has unintended consequences around product costs, particularly in light of current inflation challenges.
“It’s about working in collaboration with government because no one disagrees with the aims.”
A number of supermarket and supplier bosses have also recently urged Coffey to delay EPR, which is scheduled for full implementation next year, amid fears over the cost to the industry.
The BRC has put the cost to retailers of DRS and EPR together at £4bn, which it says will inevitably be passed on to consumers.
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