Fost Plus at Empack - The road towards 100% recyclable packaging

Update

Empack is the largest packaging fair in our country and the pre-eminent meeting place for buyers and producers of packaging. Obviously, Fost Plus could not miss it. "It is the ideal opportunity for us to meet our members and answer their questions face-to-face," says Annemarie Abbeel, Sustainable Packaging Manager at Fost Plus.

These questions are very diverse, yet there is one clear constant. "The business community, through the federations, has committed to putting only recyclable household packaging on the market by 2025. There is still work to be done to convert the remaining non-recyclable packaging to a recyclable alternative as soon as possible," explains Annemarie Abbeel.

The search for alternatives

For example, aluminium laminates are mainly used for applications that require a high barrier such as coffee or pet food. A lot of that packaging has yet to be converted to recyclable alternatives such as monopolypropylene or monopolyethylene materials.

Many companies are therefore left with questions about how to make their packaging recyclable or even more recyclable with a view to the future. "Our advice revolves primarily around the compatibility of packaging with our systems. Can consumers sort the packaging in the blue bag? Can our sorting centres distinguish the packaging and sort it out into the right streams? Are there outlets for the recycled materials? What are the recycling applications? On this basis, companies can already make a more informed choice and evaluate the different alternatives."

Empack Mechelen
© Empack
De Fost Plus-stand op Empack

Rapid evolutions

"Moreover, the packaging world is evolving at lightning speed and packaging that we cannot include in our streams today, we may be able to include tomorrow," says Annemarie Abbeel. "Just think of coffee capsules, which we can now recycle thanks to adjustments in our sorting centres. At the same time, we are also seeing a lot of changes in legislation."

Besides the many visits to our stand, we also shared our expertise during one of the seminars that took place during the fair. "Our colleague Joke Veramme gave a presentation there on the recyclability of so-called fibre-based packaging, which is gaining popularity. These are usually food packaging consisting largely of paper-board, but using an extra layer of plastic for food safety."

Comprehensive services

"Our presence at Empack is obviously only a fraction of the activities we organise with our Design-For-Recycling team. Our members can contact us throughout the year for tailored advice: they can forward all their questions to D4R@fostplus.be. Furthermore, we offer packaging diagnostics and members can have their packaging tested at our sorting centres. We also organise webinars and workshops through the federations. In this way, we help companies achieve the ultimate goal: a complete phase-out of non-recyclable packaging by 2025," concludes Annemarie Abbeel.

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