What Is Recyclability?
Recyclability assessment examines whether the package can be processed in existing collection and sorting systems and converted back into raw material. Material composition, layer structure, label and adhesive choice, colour and print, and closure systems are each addressed separately. The assessment reveals design-driven obstacles.
Purpose of Recyclability
The purpose is to show the package meets recycling targets and design requirements, and, where it does not, to identify which design element causes the non-conformity.
Which Products Is Recyclability Applied To?
- Flexible and rigid plastic packaging
- Multilayer structures
- Paper and board packaging
- PET bottles and label systems
- Metal and glass packaging
In Which Sectors Is Recyclability Used?
Standards Related to Recyclability
- TS EN 13430 (packaging — requirements for packaging recoverable by material recycling)
- TS EN 13427 (packaging and packaging waste — requirements for the use of European standards)
- TS EN 13432 (compostability and biodegradability)
- Sector design guidelines (recycler association protocols)
- ISTApackaging transport performance test series test
Recyclability Conditions
- Basis of assessment
- Processability within existing collection, sorting and recycling infrastructure
- Component separation
- Body, cap, label, adhesive and print are assessed separately
- Applicable laboratory tests
- Density separation, wash trial and recycling protocols
Equipment for Recyclability
- Laboratory-scale washing and separation equipment
- Density separation systems
- Laboratory extrusion and injection line
- FTIR and DSC (polymer identification)
- Colour measurement system
Sample Requirements for Recyclability
- A specimen of the package with all its components
- Material composition and layer structure must be provided
- Label, adhesive and ink information must be provided
- Component weights must be provided
Duration of Recyclability
Document and design review proceeds quickly. Duration extends markedly if laboratory-scale recycling trials are required.
Recyclability Procedure
- 1The package is separated into its components and each component's material is identified.
- 2Component weights and proportions are determined.
- 3The assessment is made against the flow in existing collection and sorting systems.
- 4Elements that hinder sorting (dark colour, full-wrap label, incompatible adhesive) are identified.
- 5A laboratory-scale washing and recycling trial is performed if required.
- 6Design improvement recommendations are reported.
Recyclability Acceptance Criteria
The acceptance criterion is meeting the requirements in the applied design guideline or legislation. The (EU) 2025/40 Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation introduces design requirements for recyclability and a phased implementation schedule; the requirements and dates applicable to your product are confirmed from the current text.
Evaluation of Results
Recyclability is a system property, not a material property: a theoretically recyclable polymer cannot be recycled in practice if it is not recognised at the sorting facility or its label does not separate. The assessment is therefore made against existing infrastructure, and the result can vary by region.
Recyclability Report
- Package and component identification, weight proportions
- Material identification results
- Guideline or regulatory requirements applied
- Recycling obstacles identified
- Laboratory trial results, if any
- Design improvement recommendations
Accreditation
EUROLAB holds internationally recognised accreditation obtained from accreditation bodies party to the IAF and ILAC multilateral recognition arrangements, under ISO/IEC 17025 for laboratory testing, ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection and surveillance, and ISO/IEC 17021-1 and ISO/IEC 17065 for system and product certification. This chain ensures the reports and certificates issued are accepted worldwide.
Whether this test can be offered within accredited scope depends on your product and the standard applied; since accreditation is method-based, the scope is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.
Scope and authorisationsRelated Regulations
- (EU) 2025/40 Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation
- 94/62/EC Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive
Ambalaj Testleri — What Does This Testing Field Cover?
The section below describes the field that the Recyclability test belongs to; the conditions and acceptance criteria of this particular test are given in the sections above. The scope specific to your product is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.
Packaging testing examines two different functions separately: does the packaging protect the product during transport, and does the packaging material transfer harmful substances into its contents? These two questions require different laboratory infrastructure and must not be confused.
On the protection side, distribution simulation is carried out: drop, vibration, compression, stacking and, where needed, low pressure tests are applied in sequences representing the real shipping chain. These tests are meaningful as a SEQUENCE rather than individually; in real life too, packaging is exposed to successive loads and each load builds on the damage left by the previous one. Specifications such as ISTA and ASTM D4169 define these sequences by shipment type.
The shipment type determines the sequence itself. The exposure of a palletised load differs from that of a parcel shipped individually: the latter sees far more handling, more drops and impacts in a wider variety of orientations. The growth of e-commerce has brought this second scenario to the fore and turned parcel shipping simulation into a specification group of its own.
On the food contact side, MIGRATION is what counts: the amount of substance passing from the packaging material into the food is compared against overall and specific migration limits. For plastic packaging the list of permitted substances and the limits are defined in separate legislation; the declaration of conformity (DoC) rests on this assessment and is a document that every link in the supply chain must carry.
In a migration test the choice of SIMULANT is critical. Because testing with real food is not practical, liquids representing food are used: different simulants for aqueous foods, for fatty foods and for acidic foods. Choosing the wrong simulant invalidates the result; the choice depends on which food type the packaging will contact and at what temperature.
Barrier properties are a third axis. Oxygen and water vapour permeability directly determine the shelf life of the product; in pharmaceutical and food packaging these values are a design input. Barrier performance is sensitive to temperature and relative humidity, so the measurement conditions are part of the report.
Sterile medical device packaging is the most tightly regulated sub-body of this family. Here the packaging is a barrier maintaining sterility; seal strength, leak testing, distribution simulation and shelf-life studies run together as a validation package.
The packaging legislation side is becoming rapidly more demanding. Recyclability, recovered content ratio, packaging reduction and reuse targets must now be measurable and declarable; this turns packaging design from a material selection exercise into a conformity exercise.
Method groups in this field
Distribution simulation
Drop, random and fixed frequency vibration, compression, stacking, low pressure; as ISTA and ASTM D4169 sequences.
Mechanical strength
Edge crush (ECT) in corrugated board, bursting strength, box compression strength, tape peel adhesion.
Barrier measurements
Oxygen transmission rate (OTR), water vapour transmission rate (WVTR), permeability in film and sheet materials.
Migration
Overall and specific migration tests; simulant and temperature conditions are chosen according to the use scenario.
Seal and integrity
Seal peel strength, leak detection by dye penetration, bubble test, headspace analysis.
Shelf life
Real-time and accelerated ageing; part of the validation package in sterile packaging.
Commonly confused in this field
- A single drop test is not a distribution simulation; the tests are applied as the sequence defined in the specification.
- A migration test carried out with the wrong simulant or the wrong contact temperature is invalid.
- Accelerated ageing does not replace real-time ageing; a shelf life claim is supported by real-time data.
- Barrier values are valid together with the measurement temperature and relative humidity; an OTR/WVTR value given without conditions cannot be compared.
- A packaging change (film supplier, seal parameter, box design) may require the validation to be repeated.
- A food contact declaration of conformity is not a test report; it is a document that rests on reports but summarises a broader assessment.
Which decisions these results support
- Reducing shipping damage and verifying the packaging design
- Declaration of conformity for food contact packaging
- Supporting the shelf-life claim
- Validation of sterile device packaging
- Recyclability and content declarations under packaging legislation
Related Tests
Frequently Asked Questions About Recyclability
My material is a recyclable polymer — isn't that enough?
No. A dark pigment can prevent recognition at the sorting facility, a full-wrap label can disrupt the polymer stream, and an incompatible adhesive can cause contamination. The assessment is made on the package as a whole.
Does the assessment give the same result in every country?
It may not. Collection and sorting infrastructure varies by country; a package considered recyclable in one market may not be sortable in another. Target markets are an input to the assessment.