Carluccio's, the chain of Italian restaurants and food shops, has been fined £15,000 for breaches of the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations, the current version of which is SI 2007/871. The company pleaded guilty to failing to register with the Environment Agency as a producer of packaging and failing to meet its requirements to recover and recycle packaging waste between 2004 and 2006. They also asked the court to take into consideration similar offences in 2002 and 2003.
The company joined the Paperpak compliance scheme on 12 February 2007, but in the meantime it was calculated that they had avoided costs of around £16,778 by not registering or purchasing the correct amount of packaging recovery notes (PRNs), as required by the Regulations since 2002. In addition to the fine, Carluccio's were ordered to pay compensation and costs to the Agency, which amounted to some £6,559.
The nature of its business means the company handles a range of packaging, including wine bottles, jars, cardboard, boxes, bags, labels, pallets and shrink wrap. Under the Packaging Waste Regulations, companies who have an annual turnover in excess of £2 million and who handle more than 50 tonnes of packaging per year must register with the Agency or a compliance scheme.
