Mondelez, PepsiCo and Pladis trial digital watermarking for flexible packaging

Mondelez International, PepsiCo and Pladis have launched a nationwide Belgian trial of digital watermarking technology to improve sorting of flexible food packaging for recycling. The pilot, run under the HolyGrail 2030 consortium with Fost Plus, AIM and Ceflex, embeds Digimarc watermarks read by Pellenc ST optical sorting equipment, with sorted material processed at Hündgen Entsorgungs in Germany. The project aims to build data ahead of a 2030 EU requirement for 10% recycled content in certain contact-sensitive plastic food packaging.

Why this mattersReliable sorting of flexible film is the main technical barrier to closing the loop on food-contact plastics ahead of the EU's 2030 recycled-content mandate.

• Trial launched nationwide in Belgium by Mondelez International, PepsiCo and Pladis
• Participants include Fost Plus, AIM (European Brands Association) and Ceflex
• Part of HolyGrail 2030 consortium, which comprises about 79 organisations
• Uses Digimarc digital watermarks embedded during printing, read by Pellenc ST optical sorting cameras
• Sorted film bales move from Fost Plus in Belgium to Hündgen Entsorgungs' sorting centre in Germany
• EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation will require 10% recycled content in certain contact-sensitive plastic food packaging from 2030