Program Information
Program Information
On January 25, 2024, the Government of Yukon (YG) enacted the Extended Responsibility Regulation, which requires all producers to establish a stewardship program before selling obligated products in the territory.
Product Care concluded its member consultation on February 5, 2025. The consultation results provided Product Care with a mandate to proceed with submitting a stewardship plan.
Product Care drafted a proposed Program Plan and conducted a 65-day consultation period that ended on August 9, 2025. The Plan was submitted to YG on September 10, 2025 and will be published once it has been approved by the government.
Program details
Who is obligated as a “Steward”?
Defined as per Section 6 of the regulation:
“(1)(b) of the regulation determines a Steward of designated material as:
- The brand holder of the material, if the brand holder is resident in Canada,
- If subparagraph (i) does not apply, the importer of the material, if the importer is resident in Yukon, or
- If subparagraphs (i) and (ii) do not apply, the retailer who supplied the material to an end user in Yukon.
(….)
(3) If a steward determined under subsection (1) is a business operated wholly or in part as a franchise, the steward is the franchisor, if the franchisor has one or more franchisees that are resident in Yukon.
(4) If, but for this subsection, the person who would be the steward of a designated material under subsection (1) is a retailer and the retailer is a marketplace seller, the steward of the material is deemed to be the marketplace facilitator that contracts with the marketplace seller.
(5) If, but for this subsection, more than one brand holder would be a steward under subsection (1) in respect of the same designated material, then
- in the case of primary, convenience or transport packaging, the steward is deemed to be the brand holder most closely connected to the production of the product to which the packaging was added; and
- in the case of any other material, the steward is deemed to be the brand holder most closely connected to the production of the material.”
Program Products to be included in Product Care’s HSP Plan:
Program Products (types of designated materials covered by this Plan):
- Flammable products
- Toxic products
- Corrosive products
- Domestic pesticides
- Paint products
- Animal deterrents
- Lighting products
- Alarms
Note:
Alarms will be included as a Program Product effective January 1, 2027. Any corresponding updates to the Plan required to accommodate this addition will be submitted to the Minister for approval in advance of the effective date.
For Program Product definition details and a complete list of obligated products, please refer to the draft Program Plan, Extended Producer Responsibility Regulation, and the Obligated Product Guideline published by the Yukon Government.
Program development & implementation timeline:
On December 30, 2025, the Yukon Department of Environment requested that Product Care submit a revised HSP EPR Stewardship Plan by January 9, 2026, and indicated that program implementation would be no earlier than August 1, 2026. This request appears to be inconsistent with the Government’s stated direction to pause and reassess the EPR framework. However, from a compliance perspective and in the spirit of collaboration, Product Care has submitted a revised program plan, on behalf of designated producers. The revised program plan does not commit to an implementation date.
Product Care may amend or withdraw the program plan, subject to the outcomes of the government’s reassessment and program plan approval process. Members can expect to continue to receive updates as developments occur.
Member registration:
Member registration remains open. If your company intends to appoint Product Care as the Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) for Yukon HSP, please complete the registration here.