How Germany is improving packaging recycling

German packaging schemes offer guidance for consumers

Together with eight other schemes in Germany, Landbell has designed new packaging logos that will be made available free of charge to the approximately 200,000 companies registered with the Central Packaging Register (ZSVR).

The logos will help distributors to provide harmonized guidance to consumers on how to sort their packaging waste for better collection and recycling rates – an important aim of the German Packaging Act.

The logos show which containers should be used for the different types of packaging and some contain further instructions for the correct sorting of the packaging.

This guidance should reduce the amount of waste that is wrongly disposed of in the plastic and metal collection (light weight packaging), which is currently around 30%, and which disrupts the sorting and recycling process.  

The aim is to achieve a significant improvement in the quality and quantity of packaging that is collected. In turn, this will provide more input material for recycling and more valuable post-consumer recycled materials for use in a circular economy.

In addition, the packaging schemes launched a campaign last year, Mülltrennung wirkt (“waste separation works”), which explains the correct sorting of packaging and the benefits of recycling.

Additional information on the new logos can be found here.