Packaging Recovery Notes
What are Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs)?
A Packaging Recovery Note (PRN) is evidence that one tonne of packaging waste has been recycled in the UK. Businesses that make, fill or sell packaging buy PRNs to prove they have met their legal recycling obligation. A Packaging Export Recovery Note (PERN) is the same evidence for packaging waste exported for recycling.
Every year the UK generates millions of tonnes of packaging waste, some of which is either collected to be recycled in the UK or exported overseas to be recycled to the same standards.
How do you buy and sell PRNs?
That’s where t2e come in.
We provide a transparent marketplace for PRNs, linking obligated producers with accredited recyclers and exporters through our secure online trading platform.
Who is obligated to buy PRNs?
When a company, or group of companies, meets both of the following criteria in the previous calendar year, it must buy PRNs:
- Handled over 50 tonnes of packaging and supplied it to UK markets
- Had a turnover in excess of £2 million in its last audited accounts
How is the obligation calculated?
To calculate your obligation you will need to know, for the previous calendar year:
- the packaging activities that you carried out;
- the material, subdivided into aluminium, glass, paper, plastic, steel, wood and other (wax, cork, textiles, etc), and weight in tonnes of the packaging on which you carried out these activities;
- the UK business targets for the current compliance year (the year after the one your packaging data covers).
Charities do not have an obligation under the regulations.
Who is responsible and for how much?
The number of PRNs a company needs to buy depends on the activity it has carried out on the material it qualifies for. There are four identified activities in the packaging chain:
| Activity | What it covers | Share of obligation |
|---|---|---|
| Raw material | Manufacturer of the raw material | 6% |
| Converter | Turns the raw material into packaging | 9% |
| Packer / filler | Places goods into or fills packaging | 37% |
| Seller | Supplies packaging to the end user | 48% |
For more information on how to calculate your obligation, see our FAQ.
| 2025 PRN prices | Last | Average | High | Low | Volume (tonnes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aluminium PRN | £4.80 | £80.44 | £110.00 | £4.80 | 21,502 |
| Glass other PRN | £100.00 | £76.82 | £105.00 | £30.00 | 103,158 |
| Glass remelt PRN | £120.00 | £88.08 | £120.00 | £50.00 | 180,604 |
| Paper PRN | £0.15 | £1.04 | £4.00 | £0.10 | 193,656 |
| Plastic PRN | £350.00 | £179.41 | £400.00 | £56.00 | 352,366 |
| Steel PRN | £0.40 | £8.84 | £17.50 | £0.40 | 75,963 |
| Wood PRN | £15.00 | £4.54 | £15.00 | £1.50 | 104,388 |
| Total | 1,031,637 | ||||
PRN prices
The table summarises the prices of PRNs traded on t2e in the 2025 compliance year, in pounds per tonne. There is more information on specific markets and materials in the price data and price graphs below.
Only historic prices are available on the public site. Members can see current prices.
