Blue Box Processors

The 2026 reporting deadline was May 31, 2026. Failure to submit reports on time or submit false or misleading reports may be subject to compliance orders and administrative penalty orders. Log in to your registry account to complete your report(s) if you have not done so already.

Read our update on reporting requirements for processors in 2026 and 2027

Questions about the Blue Box Program?

We have answers! Read our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) here.

A processor is a person who processes Blue Box material that was supplied to a consumer in Ontario for the purposes of resource recovery.

Under the Blue Box Regulation, processors work with producers (or producer responsibility organizations operating on their behalf), who are required to establish and operate a collection and management system for Blue Box materials.

For the purposes of resource recovery, processing includes but is not limited to:

Sorting
Bailing paper and cardboard shredding
Plastic reprocessing including grinding, washing, pelletizing, compounding, etc.
Crushed glass reprocessing
Aluminum and steel reprocessing

What are my obligations under the Blue Box Regulation?

Under the Blue Box Regulation, processors who wish to participate in the producer-run Blue Box System must register with RPRA. Producers and PROs can only work with registered processors.

All processors that process Blue Box materials supplied to consumers in Ontario for personal, family, or household use must register with RPRA through the online registry.

The list of registered processors can be viewed here.

Click the headings below to learn more about your obligations as a Blue Box processor.

If you are a processor under the Blue Box Regulation, you are required to create an account in RPRA’s Registry.

Have questions about registration? View the following resources:

Primary processors are required to complete an annual performance report to provide information about their recovery and management activities in the previous calendar year.

Registered primary processors will need to log into their registry account each year and report the following information for Blue Box material collected as part of the contracts with one or more PROs from eligible sources in the previous calendar year:

Inbound weight: Total weight of Blue Box material received from the common collection system, any supplemental collection systems, and any alternative collection systems.
Outbound weight: Total weight of Blue Box material sent to other processors for further processing.
Disposed weight: Total weight of Blue Box material sent for disposal (e.g., land disposal, incineration, used as fuel) that was collected from the common collection system, any supplemental collection systems, and any alternative collection systems.

Phase 2 of RPRA’s consultation to revise the procedure that sets out the requirements for management performance reporting and audit will take place in 2026. Visit the consultation webpage to learn more including how to participate.

Upcoming important dates

Registrant	Requirement	Deadline
New processors	Register with RPRA	January 31 of the calendar year after Blue Box materials are first processed
Processors that have not registered	Register with RPRA	Immediately
Processors	Submit annual performance report – report on their recovery and management activities from 2025 See our interim guidance for secondary processors	May 31, 2026

Unless otherwise stated, all information must be submitted through RPRA’s registry.