Why waste separation is so important

Every year, more than two billion tons of household waste are generated worldwide—and the trend is rising (United Nations Environment Programme). This waste contains many valuable materials that could be recycled.

To recycle waste as efficiently as possible, waste separation must be as accurate as possible.

The more accurate the waste separation, the higher the potential recycling rate.

Properly sorted packaging is essential for effective recycling: Only clean plastic streams allow for the production of high-quality secondary materials (post-consumer recyclate) and reduce the need for virgin plastic, CO2 emissions, and energy. Mixed or contaminated waste degrades material quality and leads to downcycling or thermal recovery instead of material recovery.

Here we explain how to properly sort detergent and cleaning product packaging, thereby making a meaningful contribution to the circular economy.

Plastic bottles and containers: Plastic bottles and plastic caps (pours, sprayers, push-pull caps, flip-top caps, screw caps with child-resistant closures).

• Rinse them out roughly first—clean bottles improve the quality of PCR/recycled material.
• Place bottle bodies and smaller containers in the yellow bin/yellow bag or drop them off at regional plastic collection points.
• Lids should ideally be unscrewed and placed separately in the yellow bin, yellow bag, or a collection point.
• If possible, remove the labels

Large containers (5 L, 10 L, 20 L)

• Reuse large containers (made of HDPE, with PP caps)!
• Or take them to the municipal collection point.

Plastic film and refill bags:

can be disposed of in the yellow bin, the yellow bag, or at collection points.

Cardboard and grass paper:

Flatten cardboard and grass paper boxes and place them in the paper bin (blue bin), but only if they are made of pure cardboard or paper.

Labels:

In many cases, paper labels can remain on the packaging; however, metallized or strongly adhesive film labels interfere with the recycling process and should be removed and disposed of in the general waste.

Myth #1: Sorting facilities handle waste separation.

Sorting facilities can sort packaging if it arrives on the conveyor belt in individual pieces and is recognizable to the machine. Food scraps or old rags, as well as different materials stuffed inside one another, make sorting plastic waste extremely difficult and, in extreme cases, can prevent it altogether.

Myth #2: Only plastic waste goes in the yellow bin

No, not exactly. For example, aluminum, tinplate, and composite materials also belong in the yellow bin—but only if they are packaging. Old cleaning buckets, clothes hangers, toys, or tools do not belong in the yellow bin. Always dispose of these with general waste or even as bulky waste.

Myth #3: Waste separation doesn’t help the environment

That’s not true. Proper waste separation makes an important contribution to environmental protection. Only packaging that is disposed of correctly can be recycled, which in turn protects resources and the climate.