EKO-Punkt, the dual system run by Remondis, is now cooperating with the Markant Group, the largest provider of services for suppliers and retailers in Europe. At the heart of the cooperation is the Recycling Checker – a new service in the One Globe Internet information forum that allows Markant's partners to check the recyclability of their packaging online. This is made possible by integrating the PackLab tool by EKO-Punkt.
Markant Customers Have Access
The Markant Group specializes in providing various services for retailers and suppliers in the food and non-food sectors. These include packaging management services on the One Globe Internet information forum. Since the end of March, Markant has added another tool to this area in cooperation with EKO-Punkt: With the new Recycling Checker at www.one-globe.info, Markant partners can check the recyclability of their packaging online.
In doing so, they have direct access to EKO-Punkt’s Pack Lab – a web application that companies can use to create a digital twin of their packaging. Pack Lab then determines the amount of material that can be recovered for the production of new packaging or FMCG products using the recycling infrastructure currently available in Germany. This allows companies to determine the degree of recyclability according to the minimum standard defined by the Central Agency Packaging Register (ZVSR) and generate and download a corresponding certificate.
They can also use an integrated fund calculator to simulate the costs of an eco-modulation fee – i.e. possible payments to a fund for poorly recyclable packaging. The use of Pack Lab is not linked to licensing with EKO-Punkt. However, Markant partners can generate up to ten certificates themselves free of charge under a special agreement, while other users can only generate three. For analysis batches exceeding these limits, “credits” would have to be purchased. Variations of packaging designs simulated online by users to increase recyclability prior to certificate generation are free of charge.
“Not least against the backdrop of tightening legal regulations, the topic of eco-design is becoming increasingly important for many companies,” says Stefan Munz, Head of Innovation and Sustainability at EKO-Punkt. “As a competence center for packaging, we specialize not only in packaging licensing but also in improving the recyclability of packaging. We have already carried out over 10,000 online tests with our Pack Lab tool. Thanks to the cooperation with Markant, we can now put our combined expertise at the service of One Globe users”, continues Munz.
Requirements by Markant Customers
“Not only legislators, but also retail customers are placing increasingly high demands on the recyclability of packaging”, adds Maik Meyer, Head of Digitalization, Sustainability & Processes at Markant Germany. “With our new Recycling Checker, we want to support our partners from industry and retail in making their packaging sustainable in terms of the circular economy. It's good to know that with EKO-Punkt, we have a strong partner with proven expertise in online packaging testing at our side.”
