Packaging & Paper Products

Packaging & Paper Products

Why Recycle Packaging & Paper Products

New Brunswick will be the first Atlantic province to implement an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program for packaging and paper products.

EPR is an environmental policy approach in which the producer is responsible for managing its product from manufacturing through to end-of-life. Under an EPR program, industry is responsible for paying for the cost of recycling these products.

A provincial recycling program for packaging and paper products will:

Divert more waste from provincial landfills and achieve better environmental outcomes.
Reduce recycling costs for municipalities (industry assumes costs associated with recycling their products).
Establish more consistent provincial standards for recycling packaging and paper products (packaging includes several plastics that are not currently recycled).
Increase access to packaging and paper recycling across the province.

For more information, please contact:

506-454-8473
Toll Free: 1-888-322-8473
Email: info@recyclenb.com

Where to Recycle

Packaging and paper products can be placed in your curbside recycling for pick-up. Please contact Circular Materials for recycling guides and calendars at 1-877-667-2626 or by email at info@circularmaterials.ca. For glass, flexible plastics and white polystyrene, visit https://www.circularmaterials.ca/redemptioncentres/ to find a collection depot near you.

For more information on packaging and paper recycling, please contact Circular Materials, or Recycle NB at:

506-454-8473
Toll Free: 1-888-322-8473
Email: info@recyclenb.com

About the Program

The Government of New Brunswick has amended the Designated Materials Regulation under the Clean Environment Act to establish an Extended Producer Responsibility program for packaging and paper products in New Brunswick. The regulation, dated October 14, 2021, sets out the requirements for the program.

As the agency responsible for designated materials in New Brunswick, Recycle NB will oversee the packaging and paper products program. Industry brand owners chose Circular Materials Atlantic to operate the program in New Brunswick.

Program implementation plan
Due to the size and scope of a provincial packaging and paper program, implementation will take place in two phases:

Phase 1
Implementation will be completed by May 2024 in the following regions:

Northwest Regional Service Commission (Region 1)
Restigouche Regional Service Commission (Region 2)
Fundy Regional Service Commission (Region 9)
Southwest Regional Service Commission (Region 10)
Fredericton Regional Service Commission (Region 11)
Western Valley Regional Service Commission (Region 12)

Phase 2
Implementation will be completed by November 2024 in the following regions:

Chaleur Regional Service Commission (Region 3)
Acadian Peninsula Regional Service Commission (Region 4)
Greater Miramichi Regional Service Commission (Region 5)
Kent Regional Service Commission (Region 6)
Southeast Regional Service Commission (Region 7)
Kings Regional Service Commission (Region 8)
For more information, please contact:
506-454-8473
Toll Free: 1-888-322-8473
Email: info@recyclenb.com

Key Program Info

For residents in Phase 1 regions, there will be no changes to your curbside recycling at this time. Please consult your local Regional Service Commission for a list of recyclable materials and collection schedules.

Phase 1 regions are as follows:

  • Northwest Regional Service Commission (Region 1)
  • Restigouche Regional Service Commission (Region 2)
  • Fundy Regional Service Commission (Region 9)
  • Southwest Regional Service Commission (Region 10)
  • Fredericton Regional Service Commission (Region 11)
  • Western Valley Regional Service Commission (Region 12)

For more information, please contact Circular Materials Atlantic:

1-877-667-2626
info@circularmaterials.ca
As part of the packaging and paper program, residents in Phase 1 communities can now return the following materials to a participating redemption centre:

  • Glass packaging (jam and pickle jars, olive oil bottles)
  • White polystyrene foam packaging (product packaging, food packaging, takeout containers)
  • Flexible plastics (bread bags, stand-up and zipper lock food pouches, potato chip bags, candy wrappers)
  • Ancillary beverage cardboard

For a list of participating redemption centres, please visit www.circularmaterials.ca/redemptioncentres.

Click here for a detailed list of accepted materials.

**Collection sites for glass, polystyrene and flexible plastics will be available for residents in Phase 2 communities as of May 1, 2024.
A stewardship plan shall apply to the manufacture, storage, collection, transportation, processing or other handling of packaging and paper products that are sold, offered for sale or distributed within the Province. For more details, please see the approved stewardship plan, which expires on December 31, 2026.
RNB
1-888-322-8473
Copyright © 2025 Recycle NB. All rights reserved.
RNB

1-888-322-8473
Copyright © 2025 Recycle NB.
All rights reserved.