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Extended Producer Responsibility Conference Held
07 May 2025ÇEVKO Foundation: “We Propose the Re-Implementation of the Extended Producer Responsibility Model”
If Turkey Cannot Integrate Its Own Waste into the Circular Economy, Global Regulatory Changes May Adversely Affect Our Country’s Export, Production, Employment Strengths and International Investment Appeal.
The Extended Producer Responsibility Conference organised by the ÇEVKO Foundation took place on 17 December 2024 with national and international speakers from the public sector, NGOs and business community. The conference emphasised the importance of returning to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) practices — which have largely been abandoned in our country since 2020 — in parallel with transition to the circular economy. As part of the conference, the 2024 Green Dot Awards were also presented.
The “Extended Producer Responsibility Conference” organised by the ÇEVKO Foundation was successfully completed on Tuesday, 17 December 2024 in Istanbul. The conference was held with broad participation from the public sector, private sector, civil society organisations and academic circles. It examined Turkey’s waste regulations and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) practices in the process of transition to a circular economy. Critical issues such as the EU Eco-Design Regulation, anti-greenwashing measures in Turkey and the work of the GETAM Recovery Test & Research Centre were addressed through presentations by national and international experts.
In his opening remarks, ÇEVKO Foundation Chairman of the Board Okyar Yayalar said: “The ÇEVKO Foundation was established 33 years ago by companies that adopted Extended Producer Responsibility in Turkey. During this period, work has been carried out for separate collection and recycling of packaging waste at its source in Turkey. Over the 33 years, educational and awareness-raising efforts have been carried out to instil recycling consciousness in our society. While collaborating with public authorities to establish the legal infrastructure, we have also worked with municipalities and licensed collection and sorting facilities. In recent years, our agenda has been to lead the fight against climate change and to be at the forefront of the circular economy transition in our capacity as a civil society organisation. We have been working for years to expand the Extended Producer Responsibility model. However, although the EPR model has gained great importance in Europe with the transition to a circular economy, we are witnessing that this practice has unfortunately been abandoned in our country since 2020. I hope this conference will be productive in terms of producing beneficial proposals for our country from now on.”
Unilever Senior Director of Corporate Relations Çetin Yılmaz: “We are facing a huge problem: the climate crisis”
Speaking among the opening remarks, Yılmaz, Corporate Relations Senior Director at Unilever and also addressing the conference participants as Chairman of the ÇEVKO Foundation Executive Board, said: “The climate crisis constitutes the greatest threat to humanity today. Its scale and effects are so large that all parties — the state, business, NGOs and of course consumers — must act together and in cooperation. Here the most important responsibility belongs to the state: to regulate and supervise, to apply sanctions and to implement incentive mechanisms is of vital importance. Producers’ participation and contribution to the process have also been regulated through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). For this reason, the EPR model needs to regain its functionality in our country.”
GCA Glass Packaging General Manager Dr Abdullah Gayret: “Current conditions do not allow for sustainable production”
Dr Gayret, general manager of GCA Glass Packaging and the gold sponsor of the event, emphasised in his opening remarks: “Our planet’s resources and environmental balances no longer allow for sustainable production under current conditions. Even when we look at measures taken by producers in their own production processes, this is not sufficient to achieve sustainability. It is of great importance that all producers minimise the waste of their products throughout their entire life cycle and reduce all types of emissions.”
Claude Turping, Chair of the Board at EXPRA – The Extended Producer Responsibility Association: “EPR practices must be prioritised”
Speaking as the final speaker in the opening section, Turping began by discussing the principles and history of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), then emphasized distinctions between EPR and taxation. He concluded his remarks: “Given that plastic usage is becoming increasingly sensitive, we believe that instead of only the EU’s Single Use Plastics Directive’s punitive, prohibitive provisions that place liability and cost of pollution on producers, authorities should tighten oversight and priority should be given to EPR practices.”
After the opening remarks, the first session on “Waste Regulations in the Transition to the Circular Economy, EPR Practices and Sustainable Production” proceeded.
Joachim Quoden, Director General at EXPRA: “EPR is mandatory in the EU regulations for batteries and accumulators, end-of-life vehicles, packaging, single-use plastics, and waste from electrical and electronic equipment”
Quoden, the first speaker of the session, noted that EXPRA was established in 2013 by non-profit recovery organisations including ÇEVKO, and that today its count of member and cooperating organisations has reached 38. He provided detailed information about the EU’s Waste Framework Directive and Circular Economy Package and the new Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation. He stated that EPR is mandatory in the EU regulations for batteries and accumulators, end-of-life vehicles, packaging, single-use plastics, and waste from electrical and electronic equipment. He then defined EPR and reflected on the different EPR implementations in the countries represented by EXPRA, discussed EPR’s common features, best practice models and the "gold" rules that EXPRA has developed for EPR.
ÇEVKO Foundation Secretary General Mete İmer: “We propose the re-introduction of a traceable, verifiable and transparent EPR model”
Speaking during the session, Mete İmer emphasised how important the definition of Extended Producer Responsibility is: According to OECD’s definition, “EPR is a policy approach in which the producer’s responsibility is extended to the post-consumer stage of a product’s life cycle.” He stated that according to this definition, EPR systems are institutional mechanisms established for prevention and management of waste associated with specific products, and they are based on the “polluter pays” principle. He explained in detail that in Turkey, EPR entered the Environmental Law in 2006 and there are still EPR provisions in the Waste Management Regulation and Packaging Waste Control Regulation in force. He noted that since 2020 the EPR model has been abandoned following the introduction of the Recovery Participation Fee (GEKAP) by the Ministry of Treasury and Finance, and that ÇEVKO Foundation has carried out voluntary EPR field activities with companies over the past four years. He continued: “Our proposal is the re-establishment and implementation of a traceable, verifiable and transparent EPR model; within this system, allowing producers that document fulfilment of their financial obligations to offset relevant expenses against GEKAP.” He invited all stakeholders including the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change and the Turkish Environmental Agency to collaborate, and added that ÇEVKO Foundation is ready to support in this regard.
Unilever Senior Director of Corporate Relations Çetin Yılmaz: “Turkey is among the countries that will be most affected by global regulatory changes”
Highlighting the possible effects of EU regulatory changes on Turkey’s exports and economy, Yılmaz stated: “As of 2030, every packaging supplied to the EU market will be required to contain at least 30 % recycled content. This condition will increase the cost of our exports to our largest market, the EU. Moreover, with the Waste Shipment Regulation that came into effect in the EU in May 2024, significant restrictions on waste exports from the EU were introduced. Yet we are dependent on imports of recycled input from the EU. In Turkey, the existing legislation and practices are not sufficient to protect our country from the impacts of these regulations. The most accurate solution to avert potential future problems is the separation, collection and recycling of packaging waste in our country with minimal loss and under appropriate conditions. Active inclusion of economic operators that supply packaging into the process through EPR will serve this solution. Accordingly, our proposal is the re-establishment and implementation of a traceable, verifiable and transparent EPR model, and enabling producers that document fulfilling their financial responsibilities to offset relevant expenses against GEKAP.”
Amanda Fuso Nerini, Head of International Relations at CONAI – Italy’s National Packaging Consortium: “Eco-design of packaging has gained importance in the circular economy”
As the first speaker of the second session, Nerini underscored: “In the circular economy, eco-design of packaging has gained importance. In the EU’s Green Deal and the re-shaped EU legislative framework, provisions related to eco-design exist. In the newly published EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, prevention, reduction and recycling remain the three main goals. In Italy, EPR is applied for packaging and packaging waste management, and the single designated organisation covering all packaging materials is CONAI.” She then provided detailed information about CONAI’s work.
Erdem Biçer, Head of Advertisement, Inspection & International Relations Department at the Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Turkey: “Sustainability has gained particular importance in recent periods”
Biçer, the second speaker of the session, began: “Sustainability has gained much more importance lately, with changes in consumer preferences, and has started to stand out in advertising campaigns. Along the same trend, counter-measures against green-washing — grouped under six main headings today — have also become important.” He spoke about the Ministry of Trade’s 2022 “Guideline on Environmental-Claims in Advertising” document, and said: “This guide was built to prevent exploitation of consumers’ environmental sensitivity and sensitivity about the environment. Our aim is to increase awareness among consumers while guiding advertisers. Fundamentally, the environmental claims included in advertisements must not contain ambiguity; they must be verifiable and measurable. Likewise, disclosures made by non-public companies regarding environmental targets must be verifiable and measurable in nature and transparently shared with the public. The principle decision-type guide has been shared with private-sector organisations and they have been asked to respond.”
Zeynep Efşan Çeşme, Director of Recycling & Producer Responsibility at the Turkish Environmental Agency: “The Agency’s activities are grouped under six main headings”
Speaking in the session, Çeşme said that the Turkish Environmental Agency was established in 2020 to carry out activities for preventing environmental pollution, protecting and improving green areas, increasing resource efficiency in line with the circular economy and zero-waste approach, and establishing, operating, managing and supervising a national deposit-return system, among other items. She summarised the agency’s activities under six headings: “establishing, operating or commissioning the operation of a deposit-return scheme; implementing administrative regulations and controls including authorisations or approvals for products subject to deposit; engaging in environmental improvement activities; supporting the establishment and implementation of zero-waste management systems; ensuring that recyclable products are returned to the national economy after use; and raising public awareness and sensitivity.”
Alphan Eröztürk, Director of Public, International Relations & Projects at the ÇEVKO Foundation: “GETAM analyses enable backing environmental claims with scientific data”
The final speaker, Eröztürk, emphasised the importance of approaches free from speculation in scientific matters and the need for environmental claims to be backed by scientific facts. He said he valued the Trade Ministry’s guideline because it included directions on how things should be expressed. “If a packaging product will carry an environmental statement, there must be scientific evidence behind it. Meanwhile, both global supply chains and regulatory frameworks are establishing clear criteria on the recyclability of packaging and the usage rate of recycled material. For continuity of trade and legal compliance as well as sustainability communication, scientific data is increasingly important. The GETAM Recycling Test Centre, established in cooperation between the ÇEVKO Foundation and Yıldız Technical University and supported by Istanbul Development Agency, provides clear scientific data on these issues. At the test centre, advanced analyses such as biodegradability and compostability are also carried out. Within GETAM, we are preparing new analysis processes tailored to industry needs. GETAM analyses offer companies the opportunity to support their environmental claims and legal obligations with scientific data.”
ÇEVKO Foundation Board Member Dr İsa Coşkun: “Alignment with the EU Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation is important for our export”
In his closing remarks, Dr Coşkun — Board Member of the ÇEVKO Foundation — drew a general framework from the presentations of all speakers. He highlighted the EU Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation, noting that 40 % of our exports go to EU countries, and emphasised that alignment with EU legislation is important for our country’s economy. He said: “We propose the re-establishment and implementation of a traceable, verifiable and transparent Extended Producer Responsibility model, and allowing producers that document that they have fulfilled their financial responsibilities within this system to offset relevant expenditures against GEKAP.”
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