Canada is the world’s second largest country by land mass with just over 37 million citizens, many of whom live close to its southern border with the United States. Canada possesses a vast wealth of natural resources and its abundant tracts of wilderness is one of Canada’s defining features – a source of pride for many Canadians. But despite this pride in its wilderness heritage, Canadians create over 280 kg of household waste each year of which just over 30% is being recycled. Recognizing both the need and the opportunity to improve Canada’s recycling rate, there has been an increased focus from all levels of government and concerned citizens on exploring new approaches. Interest in this outcome has accelerated with the increased recognition of the impact of plastics on the environment and the growing pressure to develop effective and efficient solutions to stem the tide of plastic pollution. The following paper outlines the journey currently underway in Canada, as it seeks to transition from fragmented municipal-based recycling for packaging and paper products (PPP) to a more harmonized approach in which producers assume both the operational and financial responsibility for residential recycling. The term ‘full producer responsibility’ (rather than the more common term ‘extended producer responsibility’, or EPR) more accurately describes the broad transfer of responsibilities to the businesses that manufacture and sell PPP.