Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ filtered results:

• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Collection systems , General , PRO , Processor , Producer

  Toggle the submenu What are packaging-like products?

  Under the Blue Box Regulation, a packaging-like product is:

  • ordinarily used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery, presentation or transportation of things
  • ordinarily disposed of after a single use
  • not used as packaging when it is supplied to the consumer

  Packaging-like products include aluminum foil, a metal tray, plastic film, plastic wrap, wrapping paper, a paper bag, beverage cup, plastic bag, cardboard box or envelope, but does not include a product made from flexible plastic that is ordinarily used for the containment, protection, or handling of food, such as cling wrap, sandwich bags, or freezer bags.

  If a producer is unsure whether or not their product is a packaging-like product, they can ask themselves the following questions to help determine whether the product is obligated to be reported under the Blue Box Regulation:

  1. Is the product actually packaging around a separate product?
     • If yes, the product is not a packaging-like product. Instead, the product is considered blue box packaging and must be reported as blue box material.  If no, continue to the next question.
  2. Is the product used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery, presentation or transportation of a thing(s)?
     • If no, the product is not a packaging-like product. If yes, continue to the next question.
  3. Is the product typically disposed of after a single use (regardless if some may wash and reuse it)?
     • If no, the product is not a packaging-like product. If yes, continue to the next question.
  4. Is the product made from flexible plastic that is for the containment, protection or handling of food?
     • If yes, the product is not a packaging-like product. If no, the product is a packaging-like product and must be reported as blue box material.

  If a producer is still unsure whether or not their product is a packaging-like product, they should contact the Compliance and Registry Team at 833-600-0530 or registry@rpra.ca.

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Producer , Reporting

  Toggle the submenu We are a public sector institution and understand that we are a Blue Box producer. What information do we need to include in our supply report?

  Public sector institutions, such as colleges and universities, are suppliers of Blue Box materials to consumers in Ontario. They supply Blue Box materials to consumers on-site (e.g., food service packaging, unprinted paper in photocopiers, etc.) and off-site (e.g., mailings).

  For the purposes of supply reporting, colleges, universities, and other public sector institutions must determine the total amount of Blue Box material they supply to consumers in Ontario. One way to gather this data is by canvassing internal departments to obtain annual weights of Blue Box materials supplied to consumers on-site and off-site.

  Also see:
  FAQ: What deductions are available to producers under the Blue Box Regulation?
  Compliance Bulletin: What Blue Box materials need to be reported?

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Management activities , PRO , Producer

  Toggle the submenu What are Blue Box management requirements?

  A producer’s management requirement is how much Blue Box material they must ensure is collected and processed into recovered resources each year. Management requirements are calculated based on what they supplied into Ontario two years prior and the resource recovery percentage as set in the regulation. A producer’s management requirement is calculated separately for each Blue Box material category (beverage container, glass, flexible plastic, rigid plastic, metal and paper).

  Some producer are exempt from having a management requirement based on their supply data, for more information on exemptions see the FAQ Are there exemptions for Blue Box producers? A producer that does not have a management requirement does not have any collection, management or promotion and education obligations.

  A producer with a management requirement must also provide collection and promotion and education services in Ontario. Most producers will contract the services of a producer responsibility organization (PRO) to meet their collection, management and promotion and education obligations.

  To view your management requirement(s), log into your registry account, download a copy of your Blue Box Supply Report and review the section with your minimum management requirements. Management requirement for a given year are determine by supply data from two years prior. For example, 2023 management requirements were based on 2021 supply data (submitted in producers’ 2022 Supply Report).

  Unsure if you are a Blue Box producer? See our FAQs Am I a producer of Blue Box product packaging? And Am I a producer of paper products and packaging-like products?

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box , Hazardous and Special Products

  Topic: Collection systems , PRO , Processor , Producer

  Toggle the submenu Do I dispose of my empty paints cans, pesticides, solvents and fertilizers at Blue Box collection sites or HSP collection sites?

  Paints, pesticides, solvents fertilizers obligated under the HSP Regulation along with their primary packaging must be accepted at collection sites collecting the corresponding material. For instance, empty paint cans and pesticide aerosols obligated under the HSP Regulation must be accepted at collection sites collecting paint and pesticides.

  See our FAQ to understand “Under the HSP Regulation, is the packaging of antifreeze, pesticides, solvents, paints and coatings obligated?” and “Are containers that are obligated under the HSP Regulation obligated as Blue Box materials?“

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Producer , Reporting

  Toggle the submenu What is a beverage container?

  For the purposes of the Blue Box Regulation, a beverage container is a container that:

  1. Contains a ready-to-drink beverage product,
     • “Ready-to-drink” means a beverage packaged by the manufacturer for immediate consumption that does not require any preparation. A ready-to-drink beverage is intended to be consumed as purchased and does not require a dispensing device to be consumed.
     • “Beverage” means a consumable liquid for enjoyment or hydration. It does not include an “alcoholic beverage”, or “non-alcoholic beer, wine or spirits” as defined in O. Reg. 391/21.
  2. Is made from metal, glass, paper or rigid plastic, or any combination of these materials, and
     • If a beverage container is made only of flexible plastic, it would be obligated as a Blue Box material but would be reported under the material category “Flexible Plastic” rather than the “Beverage Container” material category. The Blue Box Regulation defines flexible plastic as unmoulded plastic. For more information on reporting of packaging and beverage containers that consist of multiple materials, please see the “Component Threshold Rule” in the Blue Box Verification and Audit Procedure Registry Procedure.
  3. Is sealed by its manufacturer.
     • A cup provided to a consumer in a restaurant filled with fountain pop is not sealed by the manufacturer and is therefore not considered a beverage container. However, the cup (including the lid and straw) would still be obligated as a Blue Box material in the paper and/or plastic material categories.

  For greater clarity, the Registrar does not consider the packaging from the following product types to be a beverage container:

  • Infant formula
  • Meal replacements, nutritional supplements or dietary supplements
  • Regulated health products
  • Concentrated beverages intended to be mixed or diluted before consumption, such as frozen juices, cocktail mixers, extracts and flavour enhancers
  • Liquids that are not intended to be consumed as purchased such as soup, syrups, cream and other beverage additives, whipping cream, buttermilk, broth
  • Beverage containers made of flexible plastics such as milk bags (these are still to be reported as flexible plastics)

  Milk products and substitutes (e.g., soy beverage, almond beverage, a rigid plastic container of milk, drinkable yogurt) are beverage containers provided they are packaged in a container as defined above.

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Collection systems , General , Management activities , Producer , Reporting

  Toggle the submenu Are there are any differences in what needs to be reported between the current Stewardship Ontario program and the new Blue Box Regulation?

  Yes, there are some key changes to the data reported to Stewardship Ontario and what needs to be reported under the new regulation, which may affect what a producer is obligated for and should be considered if using data previously reported to Stewardship Ontario:

  • There are fewer reporting categories than under the Stewardship Ontario program
  • Certified compostable packaging and products now must be reported separately, but this category does not have management requirements
  • There are only two deductions permitted under the Blue Box Regulation, and producers must report total supply and then report any weight to be deducted separately
  • Exemptions are based on tonnage supply under each material category instead of a total supply weight threshold of less than 15 tonnes as in Stewardship Ontario’s program

  See our FAQ to understand “What deductions are available to producers under the Blue Box Regulation?”; “Are there exemptions for Blue Box producers?“; “Are there any differences in Blue Box producer hierarchies between the current Stewardship Ontario program and the new Blue Box Regulation?”; and “Are there are any differences in obligated Blue Box materials between the current Stewardship Ontario program and the new Blue Box Regulation?”

   

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Management activities , Producer , Reporting

  Toggle the submenu What deductions are available to producers under the Blue Box Regulation?

  There are only two allowable deductions for Blue Box materials. There are for materials that are:

  • collected from an eligible source at the time a related product was installed or delivered (e.g., packaging that is removed from the house by a technician installing a new appliance). This is the “installation deduction”.
  • deposited into a receptacle at a location that is collected from a business or institution where Blue Box collection services are not provided under the regulation. This is the “ineligible source deduction” that was expanded by the regulation amendment in July 2023.

  Ineligible source deductions:

  Blue Box Producers may deduct materials that are collected from a business or institution where producers are not required to provide Blue Box collection services. Examples include offices, stores and shopping malls, restaurants, community centres, recreation facilities, sports and entertainment venues, universities and colleges, and manufacturing facilities.

  Producers cannot deduct the following materials collected through the collection systems established under the Blue Box Regulation:

  • Material that is generated at a facility (including multi-residential buildings, retirement homes, long-term care homes and schools).
  • Material that is collected from a residence through a curbside or depot collection service.
  • Material that is collected from a public space (including an outdoor area in a park, playground or sidewalk, or a public transit station).
  • Material collected under an alternative or supplemental collection system.
  • Beverage containers cannot be deducted.

  Materials that are deducted cannot count toward a producer’s management requirement.

  Please see the Reporting Guidance Ineligible Source Deductions for the 2024 Blue Box Supply Report for more information on how to determine and use these deductions.

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Producer , Reporting

  Toggle the submenu What information do Blue Box producers need to provide when reporting their supply data to RPRA?

  Starting in 2022, producers are required to report their supply data annually to RPRA.

  Each year, producers will need to provide the previous years’ supply data in each of the seven material categories – beverage container, glass material, flexible plastic, rigid plastic, metal material, paper material, and certified compostable products and packaging material – as well as any deductions.

  See our FAQ to understand “What deductions are available to producers under the Blue Box Regulation?”

   

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Producer , Registration

  Toggle the submenu What information do Blue Box producers need to provide when registering with RPRA?

  Producers are required to provide the following information when registering with RPRA:

  • Contact information
  • PRO information (if a PRO has been retained at time of reporting), including what services they have retained a PRO for
  • Their 2020 supply data in each of the seven material categories– beverage container, glass material, flexible plastic, metal material, paper material, and certified compostable products and packaging material – as well as any deductions.

  Please note that this information must be submitted to RPRA directly.

  See our FAQ to understand “What deductions are available to producers under the Blue Box Regulation?”

   

  Copy this question to clipboard
• Program: Blue Box

  Topic: Collection systems , Collector , Producer

  Toggle the submenu Are there are any differences in obligated Blue Box materials between the current Stewardship Ontario program and the new Blue Box Regulation?

  Yes, there are several newly obligated packaging/products under the Blue Box Regulation, including:

  • Unprinted paper
  • Packaging-like products, such as aluminum foil, metal trays, wrapping paper, paper bags, cardboard boxes and envelopes
  • Service accessories, such as straws, cutlery or plates that are supplied with a food or beverage product
  • Durable products, such as CD cases, box board for board games/puzzles and power tool cases

  Note: Another change is that beverage containers are obligated regardless of the sector they are supplied into (personal, family, household, or business purposes).

  Copy this question to clipboard