PETpla.net Insider 04 / 2021

CERTIFICATION PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 04/21 www.petpla.net 53 More work is required to drive harmonisation PETplanet Insider talked to Mr Fabrizio di Gregorio, PRE Technical Director about the Recycled Plastics Traceability Certification PETplanet: Generally speaking, how does this certification work? Di Gregorio: Recycled Plastics Traceability Certification recognises the actual use of recycled plastics in finished or semi-finished products in a transparent manner. It allows for an adequate deter- mination of any share of the recycled material, via a percentage-based calcula- tion. It is destined to any company which plays a part in the value chain and holds custody of the recycled plastics including but not limited to compounders, convert- ers, blow moulders and brand owners. The Certification guarantees the verifiability and traceability of the mate- rial along the different actors, up to the consumers. In practice, it attests to the origins, sourcing, recycling processes and incorporation of the material in the final product. This practice is ensured via and based on the Chain of Cus- tody approach as well as the Recycled Plastics standards. Within such a system the ownership and the certification are verified and passed from one actor of the value chain to another. Chain of Custody, among others, guarantees the traceability and origins of waste. This in turn means that the certification must be paired with a scheme that transparently verifies that information. Additionally, to guarantee its full impartiality the Certification has an in- built independent audit system. It brings confidence in the use of recycled mate- rial not only to the value chain but also to consumers. Via its labelling system, the certification allows for providing clear messages destined to end-users who can make conscious choices about the environmental impact of the products they buy. PETplanet: What are the points where your clients most often struggle/ what are the biggest challenges? Di Gregorio: The companies strive to make their products more sustainable and are looking for trustworthy and well- reputed schemes to prove their claims to the consumer, as any environmental claim must be easily verifiable and reli- able. To be considered green or environ- mentally friendly, such claims must be based on easily verifiable, transparent certification schemes and not based on self-claims. This is necessary to ensure a level playing field and to deliver on the goals of the circular economy. The key here is that such a claim reflects reality (i.e., the actual level of recycled content, waste source, level of recyclability, with- out making any estimations or assump- tions). Secondly, it must be endorsed by a third-party body that will attest its authenticity. Lastly, it must be easily verifiable by consumers – ensuring its full transparency. RecyClass is equipped with certifications that allow for making such verified and trustworthy claims for both recycled content and recyclability. PETplanet: What are the advan- tages for the certified companies? Di Gregorio: With the upcoming regulatory requirements at the EU level which call for a structured, consistent, and transparent approach to recycled content verification, it is now of utmost importance to ensure that they are guided by verifiable and tangible princi- ples. This will bring clarity and eliminate void environmental claims used purely as a marketing tool without genuinely reducing the impact on the environment. This is where the Recycled Plastics Traceability Certification comes into play. It recognises the actual use of recycled plastics in finished or semi-finished prod- ucts in a transparent manner. RecyClass Recycled Plastics Traceability Certifica- tion allows for an adequate determina- tion of any share of the recycled mate- rial, via a percentage-based calculation. Another benefit is that it is destined to any company which plays a part in the value chain and holds custody of the recycled plastics including but not lim- ited to compounders, converters, blow moulders and brand owners. PETplanet: How do you see the future of the European plastics recycling market? Di Gregorio: RecyClass’ mission, beyond supporting the industry in rede- signing plastic packaging and boosting recycled material in new products, is to harmonise the approach of recyclability assessment and recycled content calcu- lation – the genuine drive for circularity of plastic packaging in Europe. The shelves of European retailers are very similar in different EU countries; we often find the same products. Why should not we find a common approach to recyclability, collection and sorting sys- tems? One of the aims of the RecyClass is therefore to harmonise recyclability definition, approach to design-for-recy- cling guidelines, recycled content source and share and methodologies behind these documents. To give an example, without finding a common ground for what is currently recyclable, it is impos- sible to reach a consensus on which kind of products are genuinely compatible with state-of-the-art mechanical recycling technologies. As a result, Plastics Recy- clers Europe (PRE) and the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) developed a global recyclability definition. It stipu- lates that to be considered recyclable, a product must be able to be collected and sorted in sufficient quantities. At the same time, it must be compatible with existing industrial recycling processes, or be available in sufficient quantities to justify the development of new recycling processes to become a raw material for new products. The definition allows for the estab- lishment of a global and harmonised approach by providing a common direc- tion for the industry. However, more work is required to drive harmonisation. This additional work must focus also on harmonising the different documents including design for recycling guide- lines or protocols. RecyClass works on guidelines for the so-called “recyclability and recycled content claims”, i.e., a set of instructions on how to report correctly on the recyclability and shares/type of recycled plastic in packaging. If we con- sider that the platform includes the main world FMCG brands, it is easy to imag- ine how this document could become a sort of shared specification. Going a step ahead, RecyClass collaborates with many like-minded organisations in Europe and strives for harmonising the existing guidelines and reporting on recycled content to allow for one set of rules that should be applied to lead on a common approach within the EU market. www.recyclass.eu