Over two years, 15 industry advisors worked closely with labs, academics and stakeholders to refine the Designing for a Circular Economy (D4ACE) guidelines for polyolefin-based flexible packaging. We sat down with a few of them to hear what stood out from the testing programme…and what comes next.
Interview with Nikola Juhasz, Global Technical Director, Sustainability at Sun Chemical: a key advisor to the ‘Phase 2’ testing project and participant looking at inks, adhesives, barriers and metallisation in detail.
“We can now directly map our product portfolio to the updated design guidance. It’s become a shared reference point we can use across the value chain – and that’s the spirit of the whole project: collective progress built on better data.”
Looking back on your involvement, what was one key challenge or knowledge gap the ‘Phase 2’ testing programme helped address, and how has that strengthened the new guidance?
One of the biggest gaps – and it’s something the whole industry has wrestled with – was the lack of solid, real-world data on how printed and multi-layer flexible packaging actually behaves in recycling systems. Before Phase 2, we were mostly relying on assumptions or very limited trials.
What really changed the game was the use of engineered base materials and controlled “doping”; adding specific components in a systematic way. That gave us a much clearer view of how things like inks or barrier layers affect sortability and recyclability. For instance, we saw that Near Infrared (NIR) sorting can handle more than people expected – especially when you think carefully about the design of the printed graphics on packaging.
This testing helped validate a lot of the work we’ve been doing at Sun Chemical on recyclability-enabling inks and coatings. It also gave us clear signals on adhesives and barriers, which we’re using to steer our development in the right direction. We can now directly map our product portfolio to the updated design guidance. It’s become a shared reference point we can use across the value chain – and that’s the spirit of the whole project: collective progress built on better data.
How do these updated guidelines help different parts of the value chain – from designers to recyclers – make better packaging decisions?
They’re really practical. Designers get actual thresholds, not just for inks in general, but for specific ink chemistries. That’s a real step forward. It means they can create packaging that ticks the right boxes for recyclability without compromising performance.
For converters and brands, there’s more confidence now. If they follow the guidance, they can be reasonably sure their packaging won’t hit a wall when it reaches recyclers, and that’s crucial with PPWR and EPR requirements around the corner. On the recycler side, clearer input streams mean better predictability, better yields, and better-quality recyclate.
For us at Sun Chemical, it helps reinforce that the technologies we’ve developed are on the right track – and it also gives us and our customers a way to align on what comes next. The traffic light scoring system and the online Design Check tool make it easier to bring everyone into the conversation. It’s more of a collaborative process now, not a guessing game.
“While Design for Recycling guidance is not yet formally implemented into the PPWR, ‘Phase 2’ testing results have already given a great deal of input to institutional thinking and are a cutting-edge reference. This includes supporting the European CEN standardisation process with in-depth data for flexibles, including material-specific design tables.”
In your view, why is adoption of this guidance essential for companies aiming to meet upcoming PPWR targets for recyclability and recycled content – and what additional value does it provide?
While Design for Recycling guidance is not yet formally implemented into the PPWR, ‘Phase 2’ testing results have already given a great deal of input to institutional thinking and are a cutting-edge reference. This includes supporting the European CEN standardisation process with in-depth data for flexibles, including material-specific design tables. It embeds circularity into design decisions, allows assessment of packaging concepts and it could eventually provide a mechanism for eco-modulation of EPR fees based on its scoring methods.
For us, the value is twofold. It helps ensure our products will still meet recyclability standards as regulations tighten. But it also supports our customers, giving them the confidence to make choices that are both innovative and future-proof. The guidance really acts as a bridge between voluntary best practices and what’s likely to become the regulatory baseline.
Nikola Juhasz, Global Technical Director, Sustainability at Sun Chemical