Label for Recycling (L4R), the Singaporean not-for-profit organisation will help brand owners to assess the recyclability of their packaging and provide a market proven set of recycling labels for Singapore.
In Singapore, packaging represents one third of the domestic waste. Packaging is primarily made of plastic and, as it can be seen below, in the last 15 years, the recycling rate of plastic in Singapore has steadily decreased down to 4 per cent in 2018.
Figure 1-Overall plastic recycling rate ( per cent)in Singapore (Source: NEA)
The difficulty in segregating materials and the high-level of contamination are two of the main reasons explaining this low recycling rate.
- The difficulty in segregating materials is primarily linked to the fact that packaging is not designed based on the technologies of sorting and recycling available With the PREP platform, L4R will be able to simulate the sorting and recycling capabilities of Singapore and provide recommendations on a better design for packaging. Better packaging will be easier to sort and to recycle.
- The high level of contamination is primarily linked to unclear or confusing instructions on the disposal of products for consumers. L4R seeks to address the root of the problem by strategically placing innovative and informative recycling labels on packaging to educate consumers on how to effectively and accurately
Mr Remi Cesaro, Founder & Director of L4R, said “L4R researched widely for the world’s best system to introduce to Singapore and decided to partner with PREP Design. Its flagship software tool called PREP will allow brand owners and manufacturers to design packaging that is truly recyclable, when sold in Singapore.” The low plastic recycling rate in Singapore alongside with the intention to develop an Extended Producer Responsibility framework on packaging no later than 2025 makes the need for transparent and reliable information more important than ever.
PREP Design Director, Mr Anthony Peyton said, “PREP has become a critical asset of the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) in 2018 to support the ambition to make 100 per cent packaging recyclable by 2025 in Australia and New Zealand. Furthermore, OPRL adopted the PREP to support its members for the UK market. We are thrilled to now be able to work closely with L4R to help the Singapore recycling industry to increase recovery levels and decrease contamination by positively engaging Singapore’s citizens”.
The unique aspect of this program is that brands and packaging manufacturers, who become members of L4R, will have access to both a standardised recyclability assessment framework and a standardised on-pack recycling label that is the same as seen on products sold in Australia and New Zealand, a parallel program managed by APCO and Planet Ark. This will be particularly helpful for brands who sell the same products in the three nations.
L4R is currently forming a small group of companies to be involved from the outset who will test PREP and assist L4R to form the programme’s governance arrangements.These businesses will benefit from early training to position their companies to be first to market, thereby reflecting their commitment to the circular economy.
Businesses wishing to join the program plus media who wish to know more can make contact with Mr Cesaro by sending an email to info@l4r.asia
Label for Recycling
L4R was founded in 2019 by Remi CESARO, Andrew TAY and Che Wei HSU. label4recycling.asia
PREP Design
PREP Design was founded in 2017 by Anthony Peyton, Planet Ark (planetark.org) and Innovyz (innovyz.com).
Since forming a partnership with APCO at the start of 2018, over 250 of APCO’s business members have become active users of PREP to help them design recyclable packaging. Armed with PREP, Coles, one of Australia’s two major food retailers, has set a bold goal to have all of its home brand packaging recyclable by 2020.
Work is now underway, in partnership with OPRL, to encourage UK retailers and brands to follow Australia’s example to accelerate the redesign process.
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