The UK-based initiative, Flexible Plastic Fund (FPF), has unveiled its FlexCollect report, detailing more than three years of trials aimed at recycling flexible plastic packaging (FPP) across the country.
Launched in 2022, FPF FlexCollect involved ten pilot local authorities and 160,000 households, collecting more than 400 tonnes of FPP and making it the largest project in the country.
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This report outlines the results of a collaborative project led by SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK in conjunction with RECOUP, WRAP and Ecosurety.
The initiative was conducted for the Flexible Plastic Fund (FPF), the Department for Environment, Food qne Rural Affairs (Defra), the Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Challenge funded by UK Research and Innovation and administered by Innovate UK, and Zero Waste Scotland.
The report provides a blueprint for integrating FPP into existing household recycling schemes.
The FlexCollect report indicates that FPP can be collected with “minimal to no disruption” through dedicated bags or, in some instances, loosely combined with other recyclables.
The trials achieved an 89% satisfaction rate among participating households, with close to 90% of the collected material being target material and demonstrating low contamination levels.
Materials recovery facilities (MRFs) successfully processed the FPP without significantly impacting their operations.
Recycling end markets for FPP showed approximately 80% recovery rates when recycled into new flakes or pellets and up to 100% when used for plastic timber products.
The report estimates that more than 150,000 tonnes of FPP could be collected annually once the Simpler Recycling initiative is fully implemented from 2027.
However, it also highlights a current insufficient recycling capacity to meet future demands, recommending an acceleration of investment in UK-based re-processing capacity and the development of strong end markets for recycled FPP.
The report stated: “With an estimated 1.7 million tonnes placed on the market each year in the UK, kerbside collection and recycling are key to ensuring more circular outcomes for this form of packaging. Recent reforms to UK and devolved authority policy now mandate kerbside collections from April 2027, with packaging extended producer responsibility payments providing the funding mechanism for councils to roll out this service.”
