EuCertPlast · Certification of Recycling Plants

The scheme focuses on the traceability of plastic materials along the entire supply chain and throughout the recycling process, and on the quality of the recycled content in the finished product.

The purpose of the certification is to increase the transparency of the European plastics industry and to combine the different audit schemes into one common system. It also provides suppliers and customers with a guarantee that the waste treated and the materials obtained in certified recycling plants have been processed in accordance with best practices.

The EuCertPlast certification has synergies with other certification and ecolabelling schemes, such as the Blue Angel ecolabel for products made of recycled plastics or Recyclass.

A key aspect to ensure the recycled plastic content in end products and their post-consumer origin is traceability. The Blue Angel ecolabel ensures traceability of post-consumer recycled plastics, by establishing as a requirement that the materials come from recyclers certified by EuCertPlast.

Over the last year, significant growth in the demand of these kinds of certificates and ecolabels in Spain has been observed, motivated primarily by the entry into force of the Spanish Royal Decree 293/2018 on the reduction of plastic carrier bag consumption.

From now on, shops that want to offer free plastic bags with a thickness of 50 microns or more to their customers must ensure, through the necessary documentation, that bags have a percentage of recycled plastic of 70% or more. In addition, the marketing of plastic bags of this thickness can only take place if they contain a percentage of recycled plastic equal to or greater than 50%.

This has meant that large chains demand the Blue Angel ecolabel to their recycled plastic bag suppliers, which, in turn, are also demanding the EuCertPlast certification to their recycled plastic suppliers. This situation in the plastic bags’ value chain could also take place in other plastic products’ value chains in the future, such as certain packaging or single-use products, due to the circular economy boost and its plastic strategy.

AIMPLAS has been providing technical support to companies on the achievement of the Blue Angel ecolabel for many years. AIMPLAS has an expert accredited to perform the audits in those recycling companies that seek to obtain the EuCertPlast certification.