To help consumers better understand the connections between the circular economy and separate packaging even more carefully, the Forum Rezyklat proposes that the EU Commission establish a standardised European system of separation labels on sales packaging.
78 kilograms of packaging waste per capita was generated by private households in Germany in 2020, according to the Federal Statistical Office. That is an average of six kilograms more per person than in the previous year. This means that the per capita volume of paper, cardboard and carton packaging collected from private households increased by three kilograms compared to 2019.
In the case of glass packaging, two kilograms more was collected per capita. The amount of lightweight packaging per capita remained the same as the previous year. This waste contains many valuable raw materials for new packaging. In order to be able to recover even more and better, packaging from the yellow bin or yellow bag, glass containers and paper bins must be separated for recycling. This is where consumers make a valuable contribution, by correctly pre-sorting yoghurt pots, shampoo bottles and the like and carefully separating their components beforehand. Information on this can already be found on some packaging; however, this is not always the case and often lacks clarity due to very different information on correct disposal and separation.
For example, 80 per cent of Germans would like to see standardised separation labels on packaging. This was the result of a recent YouGov survey commissioned by the Trennhinweis e. V. The members of Forum Rezyklat therefore want to create more clarity for consumers, so that they can better understand the interrelationships of the circular economy and separate their used packaging even more carefully.
To promote this education, the Forum Recyclate before, that the EU Commission establishes a standardised European system of separation labels on sales packaging. This proposal is based on the target image „General recommendations on logos/icons/symbols on packaging“ published by the Forum in August of this year.
In the view of the alliance, a new solution is not necessary. On the contrary, it makes sense, derive the standardised logo system from an existing one wherever possible. It is important that the logos used fulfil the following criteria: easy to understand, open to all manufacturers, practicable to implement and transparent, i.e. easy for consumers to find. The implementation of standardised separation notices should also be made possible digitally, so that they can be displayed in several languages, among other things.
There are already functioning separation notices that have been developed by Trennhinweis e.V.. They fulfil the above criteria, are already being printed by companies on packaging in the European single market and are therefore already being applied throughout Europe.
Source: Forum Recyclate
