In a market first, Avery Dennison, a global leader in materials sciences and technology, has had its label solutions verified by RecyClass to be fully compatible to its new guidelines, in line with the recyclability evaluation protocol for rigid HDPE containers.
The RecyClass approval shows that Avery Dennison’s film label solutions help support a more circular economy and enable the recycling of HDPE packaging, offering brands a single solution for creating more recyclable product packaging.
Previously, Avery Dennison’s standard adhesion film labels were in limited compatibility for the coloured HDPE recycling stream. It requested that the RecyClass HDPE Technical Committee carry out an assessment of several PE and PP solutions within its film label portfolio to verify their impact on the quality of recycled HDPE containers.
Upon completion of the assessment, RecyClass has confirmed that these products are fully compatible with existing European industrial recycling processes for HDPE containers for white, coloured and natural plastics.
According to Avery Dennison, this approval confirms the opportunities its products offer its customers who are facing the changes introduced by the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
The company also says the results show that FMCG brands do not need to seek out separate labelling solutions that are compatible with recycling, since its standard adhesion filmic label solutions now meet the DfR Guidelines from RecyClass.
“This is a great result for us,” says Rob Groen in‘t Wout, marketing director for Films at Avery Dennison. “This approval applies to the majority of our film labels that are typically used for rigid HDPE containers and proves that our labels can better contribute to a more circular economy.”
RecyClass develops Recyclability Evaluation Protocols and scientific testing methods for innovative plastic packaging materials, which serve as the base for Design for Recycling Guidelines for all plastic packaging types.
Recently, RecyClass modified the Design for Recycling Guidelines and HDPE evaluation protocol to acknowledge all steps of the HDPE recycling process, including the impact of the grinding process (or mechanical stress) on enabling label removability during the recycling of HDPE packaging.
Avery Dennison supported these newly developed guidelines, which emphasised that friction, rather than temperature, was the key factor for removability. This criterion is in line with the results of a semi-industrial trial Avery Dennison conducted with The National Test Centre Circular Plastics in early 2024.
