Citeo and Polytag deliver full visibility on single-use plastic recycling

Wales-based technology pioneer Polytag and global packaging compliance leader Citeo have successfully detected 100 percent of UV-tagged single-use plastic bottles entering one of Europe’s busiest materials recycling facilities (MRF) in France. 

The collaboration between the two leading businesses, focused on advancing innovation in the recycling sector, demonstrates the effectiveness of Polytag’s technology in providing insights into the lifecycle of plastic packaging. Access to accurate barcode-level data will enable brands and retailers to meet extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations, monitor sustainability initiatives and increase recycling rates. 

The news that Citeo achieved a 100 percent detection rate follows the recent announcement that leading UK supermarket chain Waitrose & Partners has joined Biffa, Ocado Retail and Marks & Spencer in supporting Polytag’s Ecotrace program. 

Through the Ecotrace program, Polytag’s unique Plastic Detection Units (PDUs) have been installed in MRFs across the UK. This enables brands and retailers to UV tag their packaging and obtain never-seen-before, real-time insights into the collection and sorting of single-use plastic at recycling centers nationwide. 

Citeo detected UV Tags printed using food-safe fluorescent ink applied directly on packaging labels using standard printing methods, including digital, flexographic solvent-based and UV-cure inks. This low-cost, easy-to-integrate solution does not impact production speed and can be seamlessly incorporated into existing packaging processes.  

During its collaboration with Polytag, Citeo was able to access barcode-level data captured as UV-tagged items entered the recycling stream and were detected by Polytag’s Detection Units. Companies applying UV Tags to their packaging will be able to view their own unique data in real time via the Polytag dashboard, providing a comprehensive view of each item’s journey through the recycling process. By sharing this data with supply chain partners, brands and retailers can help drive an industry-wide approach to improving recycling rates. 

Combining this barcode-level data with Polytag’s on-pack QR codes, which are powered by GS1 standards, will provide further benefits. It will prepare brands and retailers for the switch from traditional stripy barcodes to QR codes, while also enabling them to tailor consumer marketing initiatives, create innovative loyalty programs and deliver engaging on-pack instructions. 

Alice Rackley, CEO of Polytag, commented: ‘Working with a global leader like Citeo and achieving a 100 percent detection rate in a MRF, operating at normal speed during active operating conditions, is a milestone moment for us, and the wider recycling industry. It demonstrates the undeniable effectiveness of our UV Tags for PET bottles in full-scale facility conditions. 

‘Our UV Tags, combined with our advanced detection technology, provide an unprecedented level of insight through the supply chain, tagging and tracing every piece of packaging. In this way, Polytag technology empowers businesses to make informed decisions, to optimize their processes and to truly embrace circularity.’  

A spokesperson from the Citeo innovation project team added: ‘Polytag has been selected as part of an innovation project. We want to explore the potential of marking technologies and their impact on sorting performance in live environments. These are the first results we’ve seen and they will enable us to project the use of this new kind of data in packaging sorting.’