For importers and distributors
Importing a foreign brand? You may be the producer.
Packaging EPR laws put the obligation on a "producer," and the definition follows a chain. When the brand owner isn't based in the US, the obligation can fall on the company that brings the product into the country or first distributes it in the state — often without that company knowing.
Why it's harder for importers
Brand owners can at least ask their own packaging team. Importers usually can't. The information these laws require — every packaging component, its material and its weight — sits with manufacturers overseas, often across many brands, languages and suppliers.
The rules for who counts as the producer also differ from state to state, so a portfolio of imported brands can carry different obligations in each state where the products are sold.
And because outreach from these programs is aimed mostly at brand owners, many importers don't find out they're responsible until a notice arrives.
For how each state's producer definition works, read Are you the producer?
What we do for importers
- Determine, brand by brand, where you're the obligated producer
- Request packaging data from overseas manufacturers on your behalf
- Map every component to each state's material categories
- Register and report across your whole portfolio
- Forecast fees by brand, so you can price them in
One portfolio, one office.
Start with a free, written obligation check for the brands you bring in.