FAQ - Definitions and concepts
Producer: Any manufacturer, importer or distributor who, regardless of the sales method used, including by means of distance contracts
a) is established in Denmark and first makes available transport packaging, reusable packaging, primary production packaging or service packaging on the Danish market,
b) is established in Denmark and first makes available packaged product or packaging not mentioned in point a on the Danish market, or
c) is established in another EU member state or in a third country and via distance contracts first makes available transport packaging, reusable packaging, primary production packaging, service packaging or packaged product directly to end users on the Danish market.
Manufacturer: Any natural or legal person who:
a) manufactures packaging or packaged product
b) has packaging or packaged product designed or manufactured under their own name or trademark, regardless of who manufactured the packaging or the packaged product and whether other trademarks are visible on the packaging or the packaged product
c) offers packaging or packaged product to a micro-enterprise that has the packaging designed or manufactured under its own name or trademark, when it concerns transport packaging, reusable packaging, primary production packaging, service packaging, sales packaging, or grouped packaging.
Availability as defined in the statutory order:
Delivery of packaging, or packaged product, with the aim of distribution, consumption, or use in the Danish market as part of a business activity, whether this occurs for remuneration or free of charge. (The Statutory Order On Packaging § 3, subsection 1, No. 44)
The Environment Agency on availability
The availability of packaging requires an offer or an agreement (written or verbal) between two or more legal or physical persons regarding the transfer of ownership, possession, or other rights related to the specific packaging or packaged product, once the production phase has been completed. Transfer does not necessarily require a physical handover of the packaging.
This transfer may occur for payment or free of charge, and can be based on any type of legal instrument. Therefore, packaging is considered to be transferred, for example, in connection with sales, loans, leases, rentals, and gifts. Transfer of ownership thus implies that the packaging is intended to be made available to another legal or physical person.
(Guidance on Extended Producer Responsibility For Packaging - Danish, March 28, 2025)
Dansk Producentansvar on availability
A delivery includes any offer regarding distribution, consumption, or use in the EU market, which may result in actual delivery concerning packaging/packaged product that has already been produced (e.g., a purchase offer or marketing campaigns). Therefore, there does not always need to be an actual sale before a business has producer responsibility for packaging/a packaged product. It is sufficient that the packaging/the packaged product is made available on the market.
The availability of a packaging/packaged product requires an offer or an agreement (written or oral) between two businesses regarding the transfer of ownership, possession, or other rights related to the specific packaging/packaged product, once the production phase is completed. Transfer does not necessarily require a physical handover of the packaging/the packaged product. It is thus not crucial for the assessment who has sent and paid the invoice if payment for the packaging/the packaged product is to take place. It is also not decisive where the packaging/the filled packaging physically is located (logistics). The critical factor is who has entered/mediated the agreement concerning the packaging/the packaged product.
A packaging/packaged product is, for example, considered to be transferred in connection with sales, loans, rentals, leasing, and gifts.
Transfer of ownership indicates that the packaging/the packaged product is intended to be made available to another legal or physical person.
(DPA's website, June 18, 2025)
The end user is any natural or legal person residing or established in the EU, to whom packaging or packaged product is made available, either as a consumer or as a commercial end user, as part of their industrial or commercial activities, and who does not make the packaging or the packaged product available on the market in the form it was delivered.
Distance sales are direct sales between a business and the end user of a packaging, where the two parties are not physically present, for example, in online sales.
Distance sales also cover B2B, where the end user is a commercial business.
The Register Order: Distance sales are any agreement for the sale or purchase of packaging that is made between the producer and the end user, without the simultaneous physical presence of the producer and the end user, and where, at the time the agreement is made, one or more forms of distance communication techniques are exclusively used, including online sales.
Reuse is when the packaging is collected and used again a number of times. The packaging serves the same purpose for which it is designed. An example is a cup that is washed and used again, still as a cup.