Aldi and Arla introduce smart packaging to milk bottles to track recycling

UK supermarket Aldi and the UK’s largest dairy cooperative, Arla, are collaborating with recycling platform, Polytag, on an operational pilot to track milk bottle packaging through the recycling process using innovative UV-tagging technology to get a better understanding of the product lifecycle.

Building on their 2023 collaboration, the brands are working to improve packaging traceability and better understand how milk bottle packaging moves through the recycling system through this next phase of the pilot. This project utilises Sun Chemical's specially developed ink on wrap-around labels to provide comprehensive recycling data.

The work represents a further development in packaging traceability, with UV-tagged labels applied to Arla's milk bottle range at its Oakthorpe site. The labels, printed by Saica Flex, will enable real-time tracking of packaging as it moves through the recycling stream, providing visibility into the recycling rates and journey of dairy packaging.

Luke Emery, Plastics and Packaging Director, Aldi UK, said: "This next phase with Polytag represents an exciting step forward in how we use data to drive our sustainability strategy. By integrating this advanced traceability technology into our packaging, we can gain deeper insights into the lifecycle of our materials.”

Helena Delgado Nordmann, head of sustainability at Arla Foods UK, shared: "As Europe’s largest dairy cooperative, Arla is committed to understanding how our packaging performs beyond point of sale. By working with Polytag, we hope to gain valuable insight into how milk bottle packaging moves through the recycling system, helping us to make more informed decisions about future packaging developments and supporting our ongoing efforts to improve packaging circularity.”

Stefaan D’hoore, Director of Business Development, Specialty Inks & Coatings at Sun Chemical, said: "This next phase of the collaboration showcases Sun Chemical's proprietary fluorescent ink technology for wrap-around labels. The ink has been tested against Recyclass’ Washing Quick Test Procedures and EPBP Quicktest QT 507 with good results. It has also been approved for use on labels designed to be optimally detected by Polytag's ink-agnostic detection units, helping to deliver robust recycling data and doesn’t impact the quality of the recycled polymers. This deployment marks an exciting milestone as the first commercial use of Sun Chemical's fluorescent ink with Polytag's technology, demonstrating how collaboration across the packaging value chain can support greater transparency and help accelerate the transition to a more circular economy."

So how does UV technology work?

Invisible UV tags are printed directly onto packaging labels using food-safe fluorescent ink that has undergone rigorous safety and recycling testing. The ink is applied using standard printing methods, making it a low-cost, easy-to-integrate solution that doesn't impact production speed. Unlike the 2023 trial, which used pressure-sensitive labels, this iteration employs wrap-around labels, providing enhanced durability and coverage.

When tagged packaging enters the recycling stream, Polytag's Plastic Detection Units installed at Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs) capture barcode-level data in real-time. This information is accessible via the Polytag dashboard, providing brands and retailers with detailed visibility of their packaging’s journey through the recycling process.

Alice Rackley, CEO, Polytag, said: "This next phase deployment with Aldi and Arla milk bottle labels demonstrates the scalability and reliability of the UV-tagging solution. It's been a pleasure working with Saica Flex to deliver this latest stage of the project, demonstrating the value of collaboration in bringing innovative packaging solutions to market. This represents continued progress in packaging design, offering brands a seamless, cost-effective path to comprehensive recycling insights."

Industry Leadership in Recycling Innovation

Polytag has established itself as a leader in the recycling industry, recently achieving a milestone 100% detection rate with global packaging compliance leader Citeo at one of Europe's busiest MRFs in France.

The data captured through UV-tagging is the first step in charting the lifecycle of product packaging with real data, starting a journey for brands to be able to measure progress against sustainability targets and support data-informed decisions that may help identify opportunities to improve recyclability and recycling performance.

Polytag recently released a white paper titled, ‘EPR That Works: Incentivising Real Recycling with Data and Innovation’, which was supported by major compliance agencies, Ecosurety and Valpak, as well as leading UK retailers including Waitrose, M&S, and Ocado Retail to help shape the future of recycling using verified recycling data and make the circular economy a reality which can be read at www.polytag.io