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New York: sustainable packaging labelling
New York requires covered beverage containers to carry the refund value together with “New York” or “NY,” incorporates the FTC recyclable, recycled and reusable guides into 6 NYCRR Part 368, and requires a prescribed return-for-recycling statement on plastic carryout bags still supplied under the at-store recycling programme. A pending bill would add recyclability-claim and resin-code duties; it is not enacted.
Executive summary
New York’s current packaging-labelling framework has three in-force layers that should not be collapsed. First, the Returnable Container Act requires every covered beverage container sold or offered for sale in the state to display the refund value and the words “New York” or the letters “NY.” Second, Environmental Conservation Law section 27-2705 requires plastic carryout bags supplied under an at-store recycling programme to carry a prescribed return-for-recycling statement. Third, 6 NYCRR Part 368 conditions use of the terms “recyclable,” “recycled” and “reusable” on conformance with specified Federal Trade Commission Green Guide sections, which the Part incorporates by reference.
New York does not currently impose a generally applicable resin-identification code on rigid plastic packaging. Senate Bill 420 and its Assembly companion A.6671 would add both a recyclability-claim standard administered by the Department of Environmental Conservation and a resin-code duty for rigid plastic containers. Those bills remain proposed. They should be monitored, not treated as present artwork law.
Legal status at a glance
| Requirement | Status | Operational meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Beverage-container refund mark | mandatory | Covered containers show the refund value and “New York” or “NY,” permanently marked, embossed or printed as part of the product label. |
| Plastic carryout bag recycling statement | mandatory | Bags still supplied under the at-store recycling programme display “PLEASE RETURN TO A PARTICIPATING STORE FOR RECYCLING,” unless the commissioner approves an alternative message. |
| State resin-identification code | none identified | No currently in-force general rigid-plastic resin-code mandate was identified. S.420 would create one; it is not enacted. |
| “Recyclable,” “recycled” or “reusable” claim | claim-dependent | 6 NYCRR section 368-1.3 permits those terms only in conformance with 16 C.F.R. sections 260.12, 260.13 and 260.14, respectively. |
| Senate Bill 420 / A.6671 | proposed | The bills would restrict recyclability claims and require resin identification on rigid plastic containers. They are not current law. |
Beverage-container refund marking
Environmental Conservation Law section 27-1011(1)(a) provides that every beverage container sold or offered for sale in the state shall clearly indicate, by permanently marking or embossing the container or by printing as part of the product label, the refund value of the container and the words “New York” or the letters “NY.” Section 27-1005 separately prohibits sale unless a registered deposit initiator has collected the deposit and the container has a refund value of not less than five cents, clearly indicated as provided in section 27-1011.
A “beverage container” under section 27-1003(2) is the individual, separate, sealed glass, metal, aluminium, steel or plastic bottle, can or jar used for containing less than one gallon or 3.78 litres at the time of sale or offer for sale of a beverage. Section 27-1011(1)(b) assigns the indication duty to the bottler, filler or packager, or to the brand owner for whose exclusive account private-label beverages are packaged, with a limited agent-label route for beverages imported into the United States. A dealer or redemption centre may refuse an empty container that does not state a refund value as established by sections 27-1005 and 27-1011.
Plastic-bag recycling statement
Title 27 of Article 27 continues to require an at-store recycling programme for plastic carryout bags supplied by covered stores. Section 27-2705 requires that a plastic carryout bag provided by the store have printed or displayed on the bag, in a manner visible to a consumer, the words “PLEASE RETURN TO A PARTICIPATING STORE FOR RECYCLING.” A store may apply to the commissioner for approval of an alternative message; the commissioner must approve or reject it within forty-five days.
The Bag Waste Reduction Act, ECL Article 27 Title 28, separately prohibits most stores from providing plastic carryout bags. The labelling duty in section 27-2705 therefore applies to the remaining bags that a store may still supply. The Department of Environmental Conservation’s current guidance records the statutory statement, accepts “PLEASE REUSE OR RECYCLE AT A PARTICIPATING STORE” as an alternative formulation, and advises that the statement should appear on the outside face with lettering at least one-half inch in height in order to be adequately visible. The half-inch dimension is agency visibility guidance, not a sentence of section 27-2705.
Recyclable, recycled and reusable claims
6 NYCRR section 368-1.3 provides that no person may sell, promote, market, advertise or offer for sale a product in New York labelled with the terms “recycled,” “recyclable” or “reusable,” whether used with the term “New York State” or independently, unless the term conforms to the applicable standard in subdivisions (a) to (c). “Recyclable” must conform to 16 C.F.R. section 260.12; “recycled” to section 260.13; and “reusable” to section 260.14. Those Green Guide sections are incorporated by reference in section 368-1.4.
The Part does not convert the bottle-bill mark into a recyclability finding. A container can carry a lawful New York refund legend without supporting an unqualified “recyclable” claim. Qualifications, component limitations and collection-access evidence should be assessed against the incorporated federal standard and the overall consumer takeaway.
Pending recyclability and resin-code bill
Senate Bill 420, introduced on 8 January 2025, and Assembly Bill 6671 would treat it as deceptive to misrepresent that a product or package is recyclable unless it can be collected, separated or otherwise recovered through an established recycling programme for reuse or use in manufacturing or assembling another item. The Department of Environmental Conservation would be required to develop regulations on the types and forms of plastic products and packaging for which a recyclability claim may be made. The bills would also require rigid plastic containers sold in the state to be labelled with a resin-identification code, and would restrict placing that code inside a chasing-arrows symbol unless the product is on the department’s recyclable list.
As of the verification date the Senate bill stood in the Committee on Finance after being reported from Environmental Conservation. It is not enacted. Teams may use the bills for horizon scanning, but they should not describe the proposed standard as a present New York requirement or assign it a mandatory compliance date.
Who bears each obligation
The deposit mark is the duty of the bottler, filler, packager or exclusive-account brand owner, with a limited agent-label route for imports. Dealers must not sell unlabelled covered containers. The bag statement is a store-operator duty for bags the store still provides. Claim conformity under Part 368 follows the person who sells, promotes, markets, advertises or offers the labelled product. These actors should be identified separately.
Enforcement and practical consequences
The Department of Environmental Conservation administers the Returnable Container Act, the at-store bag programme and the Part 368 labelling standards. A dealer or redemption centre may refuse containers that lack the refund indication. Consumer-protection authorities and the Federal Trade Commission retain independent routes for deceptive environmental marketing. Proposed S.420 enforcement machinery should not be applied until the bill is enacted and its effective dates are known.
Practical artwork checklist
For beverages, classify the container under section 27-1003, confirm the not-less-than-five-cent refund value, and inspect a permanent mark, embossment or product-label print that includes “New York” or “NY.” For remaining plastic carryout bags, apply the statutory return-for-recycling statement or a commissioner-approved alternative, and record any DEC visibility guidance used. Inventory “recyclable,” “recycled” and “reusable” against 16 C.F.R. sections 260.12–260.14. Do not treat S.420 as current law.
Primary sources and verification
New York State Senate. Environmental Conservation Law section 27-1011, beverage-container labelling. Official statute
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Returnable Container Act reprint, including sections 27-1003, 27-1005 and 27-1011. Official agency reprint
Cornell Legal Information Institute. 6 NYCRR section 368-1.3, labelling standards. Consolidated regulation
New York State Senate. Environmental Conservation Law section 27-2705, recycling programme requirements. Official statute
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Plastic bag waste reduction, including remaining bag labelling guidance. Official programme page
New York State Senate. Senate Bill 420 (2025-2026), recyclability claims and plastic-container labelling. Official bill page
Federal Trade Commission. Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, 16 C.F.R. Part 260. Official Green Guides
Federal Trade Commission. Environmental Claims: Summary of the Green Guides. Business guidance
S.420 remains proposed unless enacted. Deposit and bag artwork should be checked against current DEC materials before release. Last verified: 21 August 2026.