Checkpoint products certified for household recycling

The study, conducted by German environmental services provider Interseroh+, certifies that Checkpoint’s range clear RF labels and RFID inlays are ‘Made For Recycling’. This means that they can be recycled as part of normal household recycling process, without having to be separated from packaging.   

 

Each year Checkpoint manufacturers 1.75 billion clear RF labels that are applied to a wide variety of plastic packaging, including those manufactured from Polyethylene (PE) and Polypropylene (PP). The labels are applied in-store, or at the point of manufacture, to protect products such as cleaning products, protein powder packs, confectionery and fresh meat, from theft and are unlikely to be removed by consumers after purchase.  

 

Without certification that the attached labels are recyclable, millions of plastic products are potentially being wrongly sent to incineration or landfill due to fears they are contaminating the recycling waste stream, the company said.  

 

In 2022 the flexible packaging production volume is expected to soar to more than 33m metric tons globally. The nature of this type of packaging means that some do not carry recycling information, as it is difficult to print on the thin material, according to Checkpoint. 

 

As Checkpoint’s clear RF labels are now certified as recyclable, the company can print the globally recognized recycling symbol on its labels before being applied to packaging. This will enable brands using packaging items in flexible PE and PP to increase recycling rates on their product lines. 

 

Ivan Gosling, global product manager at Checkpoint Systems, commented: We are delighted with the results of this study, which clearly highlights our commitment to helping our customers achieve their sustainability goals. Following the recent news that our labels can be recycled with paper-based packaging, this is another step forward on our journey to provide brands and retailers with high performing, quality labels that can be included in standard recycling processes to support environmental initiatives. 

 

‘Plastic packaging already has a low recycling rate, which is currently less than 10%  globally, with millions of labels being applied to FMCG products packed in plastic every year to protect them against theft. Thanks to this new certification we hope that recyclers will be able to increase this rate, knowing that Checkpoint’s clear RF labels and RFID inlays are recyclable.’ 

 

Checkpoint’s range of fully recyclable clear RF labels and RFID inlays are available immediately.