Promoting Reusable Solutions for Plastic Packaging

In order to reduce plastic waste and enable a circular economy, reusable systems are essential. Researchers from Fraunhofer UMSICHT and Fraunhofer IML, who collaborate in the Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Circular Plastics Economy CCPE, have compared three plastic-based reusable systems with their single-use alternatives for the Foundation Initiative Reusable (SIM).

(Oberhausen) The result of the study: Reusable is superior to single-use in 14 of the 17 categories examined and offers great potential for the success of a circular economy. What is missing are clear political frameworks and the implementation of the existing waste hierarchy, which actually prioritizes reuse.

Reducing plastic for a sustainable future – for example, with reusable transport boxes made of plastic. They are robust, collapsible, and provide good product protection. Only 13 percent of the plastics produced in Germany are made from recyclates, and in the packaging sector, it is even only 11 percent. Furthermore, only a very small portion is reused for its original purpose; typically, cascading uses (downcycling) dominate. In addition, Germany is one of the largest exporters of plastic waste worldwide.

The EU and the federal government have responded to the plastic problem: The production of certain single-use plastic products is banned, a recyclate quota has been mandated for PET beverage bottles, and since the beginning of 2022, the deposit requirement for single-use beverage bottles has been extended to all types of beverages. “The Green Deal and the EU Taxonomy Regulation provide the right direction for sustainable economic practices. However, we see the following problem: The waste hierarchy regulated in European waste law for decades defines a ranking in the generation and handling of plastic waste. In this, recycling is subordinate to multiple use. However, the implementation of this waste hierarchy has hardly taken place so far,” explains Jürgen Bertling from the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety, and Energy Technology UMSICHT and project leader of the study.

Circularity, Performance, and Sustainability

Currently, there are predominantly single-use solutions for plastic packaging. Some reusable systems can be found in the B2B sector, e.g., in the automotive industry and in the transport of fruits and vegetables. In the B2C sector, they are rather the exception, such as transport boxes for food from local farmers. Therefore, the goal of the current study by Fraunhofer CCPE on behalf of the Foundation Initiative Reusable was to evaluate plastic-based reusable packaging systems, compare them with single-use alternatives, and derive recommendations for strengthening the circular economy. To this end, the researchers analyzed three reusable systems: fruit and vegetable crates (already established in trade), plant trays (preparing for large-scale use), and coffee-to-go cups (in the introduction phase). They were compared with the corresponding single-use solutions in the three areas of circularity, performance, and sustainability across a total of 17 subcategories. The result: Reusable offers clear advantages for all three examined demonstrators – from material efficiency to lower plastic emissions to better product protection through more robust designs.

Initially Higher Capital Investment

For companies, reusable systems initially mean a higher capital investment due to the establishment of logistics and return systems, storage space, and cleaning technology. However, in the long term, reusable systems prove to be more cost-effective and resource-saving, strengthen regional economies, and contribute to increased technological sovereignty. “Decisive for the advantages of a reusable system are primarily the circulation number and the distribution structure: The higher the circulation number and the shorter the transport distances, the better reusable performs compared to single-use. Therefore, decentralized pooling solutions are essential,” explains Kerstin Dobers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML, co-author of the study. Compared to other packaging materials such as paper or wood, plastic has a variety of advantageous properties – lightweight, durable, chemically inert – and remains the material of choice for numerous applications, especially in reusable systems.

Consistently Implement Waste Hierarchy and Optimize Reuse

This report is addressed equally to politics, associations, manufacturers of plastic packaging, and providers of reusable pooling solutions. The author team consequently recommends two central measures: On the one hand, ways to consistently implement the waste hierarchy should be identified and promoted. Single-use systems should only come into play when the possibilities for multiple use have been exhausted. “This result of the study stands in contrast to the current reality in the packaging market. There must be new political frameworks that sanction circumventing this order. At the same time, incentive systems should be created for companies to increasingly establish reusable solutions for plastics,” says Jürgen Bertling. He also calls for a review of the waste hierarchy by an expert panel and subsequently its strict implementation in practice. It would also make sense to focus less on recycling quotas and instead set demanding recyclate shares in production.

Exploiting Optimization Potentials

According to Kerstin Dobers, the second central measure is to exploit the existing optimization potentials for reusable solutions so that their advantages can be further expanded and possible deficits eliminated: “Certainly, there are still numerous innovations possible with reusable solutions, especially in online retail or the take-away sector. Good solutions are characterized by the fact that the packaging is modular and its volume is reducible (nestable or collapsible). Here, conditions for national and international standardizations are needed to exploit the ecological potentials of reusable systems.” Furthermore, environmental labels to distinguish between reusable and single-use must be clear. Here, associations are particularly called upon.

Study Available for Download

The study “Plastic-Based Reusable Systems in the Circular Economy” is available for download:

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Photo: © Mario Iser