Designing packaging in accordance with the PPWR – what should you bear in mind?

New regulations on packaging and packaging waste introduce a significant change in the approach to packaging design. The focus is on ‘eco-design’, which involves creating packaging with a view to its subsequent recycling, minimising its environmental impact and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements. This changes the way we think about packaging – it is not just appearance and function that matter, but its entire life cycle.

Design for recycling

One of the key principles of the PPWR is ‘design for recycling’, which involves designing packaging in such a way that it can be effectively processed within existing recycling systems. This means that aspects such as the following must be taken into account right from the design stage:

• ease of material separation, 
• compatibility with sorting and processing technologies, 
• avoiding solutions that hinder recycling (e.g. permanent bonds between different materials). 

Packaging that does not meet these criteria may, in practice, be considered non-recyclable – even if, in theory, it consists of recyclable materials.

Single-material packaging and reducing the number of components

Another key area is the use of single-material packaging, i.e. packaging made from a single type of raw material. Such solutions significantly improve recycling efficiency and simplify the sorting process.

This marks a move away from multi-layer and multi-material packaging, which is difficult or impossible to process in standard facilities. Particularly problematic are combinations of different plastics, laminates or combinations of plastic with aluminium or paper, as separating these is costly or technologically unviable.

At the same time, there is a need to reduce the number of components – for example, additional plastic parts, inserts, windows, metal clips or unnecessary protective layers. It is also increasingly recommended to use homogeneous closures (e.g. a cap made of the same material as the bottle) and to eliminate elements that are not essential from the point of view of the product’s functionality.

Colour schemes and additives are also significant – packaging made from light-coloured or transparent materials is easier to recycle than dark plastics, and reducing the use of colourants and chemical additives improves the quality of the recovered raw material.

The simpler and more uniform the packaging design, the greater the chance of it being recycled effectively and complying with future requirements.

Labels, adhesives and details matter

In the context of the PPWR, elements that have often been overlooked in environmental analyses – such as labels, printwork and adhesives – are also becoming increasingly important. It is precisely these ‘details’ that often determine whether packaging meets regulatory requirements.

Inappropriately selected materials can significantly hinder the recycling process, for example by contaminating the raw material stream or disrupting technological processes. Therefore, when designing packaging, attention should be paid to:

• the ability to easily separate the label from the packaging, 
• the use of adhesives compatible with recycling processes, 
• minimising printing or using environmentally safe inks. 

Designing packaging in accordance with the PPWR requires a shift in approach – from designing ‘for today’ to designing ‘for the entire life cycle’. Simplicity, material homogeneity and adaptation to realistic recycling possibilities are of key importance. For companies, this means the need for close cooperation between design, procurement and environmental departments, and often also a change of suppliers or production technologies. It is worth bearing in mind that the new packaging regulations also affect online sales – the e-commerce sector faces its own set of challenges and obligations arising from the regulation.