Four overlapping regulatory frameworks are making ethical labour risk a market access and legal compliance question — in addition to, not instead of, a reputational one. SME importers have an approximately 18-month window, from a June 2026 planning perspective, to build proportionate controls before the EU Forced Labour Regulation applies on 14 December 2027. In our previous edition,, we examined how the social licence to operate — the informal community-level authority that

EU packaging regulation is no longer a future issue—it is already reshaping cost, compliance, and supply chain requirements for SME retailers. From the PPWR to the UK Plastic Packaging Tax and EPR reforms, circular packaging solutions now sit at the intersection of regulatory risk and commercial viability. This analysis outlines what is changing, how the risk reaches your business, and what you need to do before 2026.