RECOUP updates plastics packaging design guide to include film recyclability

Recycling charity, RECOUP, has released an updated version of its packaging design guide to include the recyclability of plastic film.

The ‘Recyclability by Design’ document was created to give packaging designers clear guidance on the pack formats and materials that have the best chance of being recycled at the end of life.

The decision to include film comes as the UK continues to work towards its recycling ambitions for 2025. While it is estimated that almost 400,000 tonnes of plastic film are produced in the UK each year, RECOUP’s annual UK Household Plastics Collection Survey reported in 2019 that only 16 per cent of UK Local Authorities list film as being collected kerbside.

This low service rate is, in part, due to the challenges this material causes collection and sorting machinery, its lightweight nature, transportation challenges and the ultimate low value, as well as the high contamination rates of this type of material.

The updated version includes guidance detailing the importance of separation of materials, avoidance of laminates and the greater recyclability credentials of PE and PP film when compared to other materials. It also includes tables from RecyClass, a free online too which enables the assessment of virtually any plastic package regarding recyclability.

RECOUP says not only will these guidelines help to support making plastic film packaging more suitable for collection, but also help to reduce contamination levels and the weight and quantity of films in non-circular waste routes.

Paul East, RECOUP’s Packaging Sustainability Manager, said: “At times of increasingly challenging recycling targets both in the UK and across Europe, there is an ever-increasing importance in finding sources of plastics to recycle rather than go to non-circular end destinations such as landfill and incineration.

“RECOUP’s Recyclability by Design publication helps to address this at the first stage by advising users and designers of plastic packaging of the best way to ensure that their packaging has the best chance of being recycled, or, failing that, have minimal impact in terms of what cannot be recycled.”

The Recyclability by Design document is available to download for free on the RECOUP website and can be accessed by clicking here.