In relation to the implications for companies producing caps of the Royal Decree 1055/2022 of December 27 on packaging and packaging waste, theWaste Agency of Catalonia clarifies that:

- The obligation to register as producers of the product "cork caps" belongs to the wineries, as has been done until now, and not to the cork company.

- Cap manufacturing companies must register as producers of the packaging that contains the caps that are sent to the wineries (bags, cardboard boxes, pallets, etc.) and report the past and current quantities generated, as indicated by the register

- During the registration process, cork companies have adhered to the "Extended Producer Responsibility System (SCRAP)", which will take into account the packaging that supports the corks that are sent to the wineries. Until this SCRAP is created, at the time of registration as a producer you must indicate that you adhere to a "pending creation" SCRAP.

- The obligation to label the "cap" container corresponds to the cellar and not to the capper. Even if the cap company is asked to put some symbol on the cap. In this sense, it would be good if in the future it was decided by consensus which symbol to use. For now, it is not mandatory nor is an official symbol defined for compliance with the obligation to indicate the fraction or container in which they must be deposited.

– Sparkling corks are a special case, since they are not considered packaging because they do not go to the final consumer. In this case, the taper company has no obligation and the winery must declare it as production waste, not as packaging.

The procedure can be accessed here.