Circular Action Alliance Launches Its Own EPR Forum in 2027

By Siam Sukkhee Trading Co., Ltd — 2026-10-02 — Waste360 (recycling/scrap)

The Circular Action Alliance just announced a new event scheduled for September 29–30, 2027, in Milwaukee. They're calling it the inaugural CAA EPR Forum, and it's designed to let producers, recycling system partners and EPR specialists talk about what's actually happening when policy turns into practice.

This matters because extended producer responsibility programs are still largely new territory. The regulations are moving from draft to live implementation across multiple states, and the people running these systems need a place to gather, compare notes, troubleshoot and figure out what's working.

The forum kicks off alongside SPC Advance 2027, sharing some main stage programming, then splits off to become its own standalone event. That split is deliberate. Instead of staying tethered to a broader packaging conference, CAA wanted a space explicitly dedicated to EPR implementation, emerging insights and how to actually build stronger, more cost-efficient paper and packaging recycling systems.

Short version:

The framing from CAA's CEO is straightforward enough. Jeff Fielkow noted that as EPR programs move from policy to implementation, "success depends on engagement across every part of the system." The forum is meant to be that engagement point—a dedicated space to advance practical solutions and strengthen system performance.

Attendees will get direct access to CAA staff and national, state and technical experts. Programming will zero in on material and market challenges, infrastructure gaps, opportunities for alignment across different state programs and how producer funding can actually strengthen recycling systems over time. Sessions will cover education and outreach, data and reporting, infrastructure planning and the responsible management of covered materials.

It's not flashy. It's not a consumer-facing initiative. It's work.

The details—agenda, speakers, registration—are still being finalized and will post at circularactionalliance.org/EPR-Forum when they're ready. For now, if you're involved in EPR implementation at any level, you probably want to mark the dates. Milwaukee in late September 2027.

Source: "As packaging EPR programs move from policy to implementation, success depends on engagement across every part of the system." — Circular Action Alliance (official announcement)

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