These packaging recovery targets determine how much material accredited reprocessors must process each year, thereby issuing the relevant PRNs for legally obligated packaging producers to purchase.

The revision to targets originally set in November 2004 for the period up to 2008 were made in November 2005 after consultation with industry.

Business targets for packaging waste recovery, 2006-2010 (in %):
	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Paper	66.5	67	67.5	68	68.5
Glass	65	69.5	73.5	74	74.5
Aluminium	29	31	32.5	33	35.5
Steel	56	57.5	58.5	59	59.5
Plastic	23	24	24.5	25	25.5
Wood	19.5	20	20.5	21	21.5
Overall Recovery	66	67	68	69	70
Min. Recycling*	92	92	92	92	92
Source - Defra
* Target refers to the percentage of the overall recovery target that must be achieved through recycling materials (rather than energy recovery)

These changes were made for two main reasons. Firstly, because new data suggested that previous estimates of the amount of packaging waste in the waste stream – on which the targets were calculated – were inaccurate. This has led to targets in the glass and plastics streams being raised from the previously-published targets.

The second reason for a revision to the targets was because Defra decided that companies using leased packaging and companies with a franchise structure must also pay for a share of UK packaging waste recovery.

With more companies added to the UK's producer responsibility system, those businesses already covered by the system need pay for a slightly lower share of the UK's efforts to meet the European recovery targets of 2008. Hence, overall targets for recovery have been lowered slightly, as well as material-specific targets for paper, aluminium, steel and wood.

Along with changes to the recycling and recovery targets, Defra has also made changes to the "minimum recovery by recycling" remit for producers. This means that the amount of the overall recovery target to be achieved by recycling materials (rather than recovering through energy-from-waste plants) has been relaxed by up to three percentage points each year.

In terms of PRNs – packaging waste recovery notes, the evidence for producer responsibility that packaging companies must buy from accredited reprocessors to meet their legal targets – this means more energy recovery PRNs can be used towards overall recovery obligations than before.

Europe
The next stage on the European scene is to meet the Directive targets in 2008, which include an overall recovery target of 60%, an overall recycling target of 55% and material-specific targets for paper (60%), glass (60%), metals (50%), plastic (22.5%) and wood (15%).

The European Commission is expected to put forward further targets beyond this year, which Defra's 2009 and 2010 national targets attempt to pre-empt.