NorthEPR vs consultants vs spreadsheets: how food and beverage producers handle packaging EPR filing
In short
Food and beverage producers selling packaged goods in Canada and the US generally handle packaging EPR filing one of three ways: hire a consultant to do the work, manage it in-house with spreadsheets, or use software like NorthEPR that prepares the filing while the producer stays in control. Consultants do the most work for you and cost the most. Spreadsheets cost nothing in software but consume staff time every cycle. NorthEPR sits between them: a flat yearly subscription for software that evaluates your packaging against 16 jurisdictions, estimates the fees line by line, and prepares draft filings you review and submit yourself.
The three options, side by side
| EPR consultants | Spreadsheets and manual filing | NorthEPR | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price model | Quoted per project or on retainer. Traditional EPR consulting engagements are published at $30,000 to $100,000+ for the first year. | No software cost. The cost is staff time, every reporting cycle. | Flat subscription: $2,500 CAD/year for a single province, $7,500 CAD/year for Canada multi-jurisdiction (up to 7), $12,000 CAD/year cross-border. One-time onboarding and data setup, typically $500 to $2,500, quoted in writing. Pilot clients pay nothing. |
| Who does the work | The consultant's team: research, data wrangling, filing preparation. You supply the underlying packaging data and stay responsible for its accuracy. | Your own team, usually whoever owns finance or operations. | You load your catalogue. NorthEPR evaluates it against the rules of the 16 jurisdictions it covers, estimates fees from published schedules, and prepares a draft of each filing. You review it, export it, and file it yourself in each program's portal. |
| Turnaround | Scoped per engagement. | As fast as your team can gather supplier data, classify materials, and enter weights. | The free check is returned within two working days of receiving your data. |
| What you get | Expert interpretation of the rules, done-for-you preparation, and someone to call with questions. | Full control and no vendor relationship. | Obligation checks across 16 jurisdictions, line-by-line fee estimates from published fee schedules, draft filings ready to review and submit, and an audit trail of every result. Regulator and PRO fees are separate and paid by you directly to them. |
| Best suited for | Companies that want the work fully off their plate and have the budget for it, or complex multi-entity structures. | Very small SKU counts in a single jurisdiction, where someone in-house already knows the rules. | Food and beverage producers selling in multiple provinces or states with no compliance staff. |
How the trade-offs actually work
Consultants trade money for effort. A consultant takes the research, the data wrangling, and the filing preparation off your team's plate. That is the whole value proposition, and it is priced accordingly: traditional EPR consulting engagements are published at $30,000 to $100,000+ for the first year. For a company with complex structures or no internal capacity at all, that can be the right call. Note that even with a consultant preparing your filings, you remain responsible for the accuracy of the underlying data.
Spreadsheets trade effort for money. There is no software fee, which makes this the default for small producers. The work falls on whoever owns finance or operations: gathering packaging data from suppliers, classifying materials into each program's categories, entering weights, and reformatting everything per jurisdiction, since each program defines its own reporting rules and classifications. Packaging data in most companies is spread across design teams, procurement systems, and supplier spreadsheets, each tracked differently, so the consolidation step is manual and slow. Manual entry introduces transcription errors, and version conflicts appear as soon as more than one person touches the file. This approach works best when the catalogue is small, the jurisdictions are few, and someone in-house already understands the rules.
NorthEPR trades a flat subscription for the repetitive middle. The software keeps your catalogue, volumes, and company facts in one place, evaluates them against the obligation rules of each of the 16 jurisdictions it covers, estimates fees from published schedules where they exist, and prepares a draft of each filing that is a report. You review the draft, export it, and file it yourself. NorthEPR is software, not a consultancy: it is not legal, tax, or accounting advice, and it does not file on your behalf or pay fees for you.
Frequently asked questions
Do I legally need help with EPR filing, or can I do it myself?
This is general information, not advice about your company. Nothing requires you to hire anyone: producers can register and file directly with each program or PRO. Whether you need help depends on your catalogue size, how many jurisdictions you sell into, and whether someone in-house understands the reporting rules. NorthEPR does not give legal, tax, or accounting advice, and it does not determine your legal obligations; confirm those with each program or PRO before you act.
How much does each option cost?
This is general information, not advice about your company. NorthEPR publishes its prices: $2,500 CAD per year for a single province, $7,500 CAD per year for Canada multi-jurisdiction, $12,000 CAD per year cross-border, plus a one-time onboarding and data setup fee typically $500 to $2,500, quoted in writing before any work begins. Traditional EPR consulting engagements are published at $30,000 to $100,000+ for the first year, though quotes vary by scope. Spreadsheets have no software cost; the cost is staff time each cycle. Regulator and PRO fees are separate under every option and are paid directly to the programs.
Will NorthEPR file my reports for me?
No. This is general information, not advice about your company. NorthEPR prepares a draft of each filing from your data. You review it, export it, and submit it yourself in each program's portal, and you pay any regulator or PRO fees directly. NorthEPR never files on your behalf and never pays fees for you.
I only sell in one province. Do I need software?
This is general information, not advice about your company. Possibly not. A small catalogue in a single jurisdiction is the case where spreadsheets work best, provided someone in-house knows the reporting rules. NorthEPR has a single-province tier at $2,500 CAD per year for producers who want the obligation check and fee estimates done for them, but if your situation is simple and stable, manual filing may be the economical choice.
Is the free check really free?
Yes. This is general information, not advice about your company. Pilot clients pay nothing: no contract, no credit card, no obligation. You send a spreadsheet or invoice export listing what you package and sell, and within two working days you get your fee report as a PDF with the math shown line by line, plus a draft of your first report to review and file. Paid plans and the one-time onboarding fee only apply if you continue after the pilot.
What happens to my data?
This is general information, not advice about your company. Only NorthEPR's founder reviews your packaging list by hand. It is stored with our secure hosting providers, never sold, and deleted on request subject to the retention rules in our privacy policy. We are happy to sign an NDA first.
When not to pick NorthEPR
We would rather you pick the right option than pick us. Do not pick NorthEPR if:
- You already have compliance staff who know the reporting rules. Software adds little where expertise already sits in-house.
- You need legal advice on your obligations. NorthEPR is software, not a consultancy. It does not give legal, tax, or accounting advice, and it does not determine whether you are obligated.
- You sell only where we do not cover. NorthEPR covers 16 jurisdictions: Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Yukon, Canada's Federal Plastics Registry, Oregon, Colorado, California, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington. If everything you sell stays outside those, we cannot help you yet.
- You want someone to take the pen entirely. Some producers want a consultant who handles correspondence and submits filings. NorthEPR prepares the filing; you always review and submit it yourself.
The bottom line
There is no universally right answer, only the right trade for your situation. If the work needs to be fully off your plate and the budget allows, a consultant is the honest choice. If the catalogue is small and someone in-house knows the rules, spreadsheets are the economical choice. If you sell across several provinces or states with no compliance staff and want the repetitive middle handled for a flat subscription, that is what NorthEPR is built for. Start with the free check and see the math on your own data before deciding anything.
Claim your free 2026 packaging fee check