Dive Brief:

• GreenBlue is revamping its more than decade-old How2Recycle program, which involves a label used by more than 800 brands, retailers and other members across the U.S. and Canada to guide consumers in the disposal process for packaging.
• Executive Director Paul Nowak said during SPC Advance in Chicago on Monday that the updated label, dubbed How2Recycle Pro, has been shared with the Federal Trade Commission, as well as other legislators and regulators in the U.S. and Canada for “final feedback” before the labels are officially rolled out.
• The new How2Recycle Forward campaign also seeks to ensure that the label remains adaptable and current. Last week, The Recycling Partnership announced that acceptance data will be published via its National Recycling Database twice a year and “will serve as a key data point” for H2R. GreenBlue also noted plans to partner with the Association of Plastic Recyclers, the Carton Council and the Recycled Materials Association. 

Dive Insight:

The How2Recycle label has been plastered on packages for more than a decade now. GreenBlue’s Sustainable Packaging Coalition began the project in 2008, finishing its soft launch in 2012. As it grew, though, the program also gained critics who pointed out that the use of chasing arrows confused consumers into thinking that certain items, such as plastics films, had more robust recycling opportunities than in reality.

The new way forward for H2R comes in an unsettled landscape for labeling rules, as the FTC considers updates to the Green Guides, which offer marketing guidance on recyclability labels, and states address labeling within extended producer responsibility legislation and other laws. The organization said it’s “future-proofing the label so that labels are accurate and compliant no matter when or where they’re issued.”

GreenBlue’s process has involved bringing together design and packaging experts, and consulting federal, state and international models. That was in part through its year-old design collaborative, and doing “consumer and corporate research to determine the best, most comprehensible label designs.”

Nowak shared an example image of the label redesign on stage on Monday.

On-pack instruction “needs to evolve with the world around us, which can be policy, which can be recycling rates,” Nowak said.

Some of H2R’s other partners include SPC members Specright, Aura and SGS Marks. Nowak explained in an interview prior to the event that members have more than 60 questions they have to answer for each label, so these vendors are helping with things like automating API connections to ensure data quality and make label decisions more efficient.

EPR is also affecting the future of H2R in how it may unlock funding for consumer awareness with recycling. Nowak said that “while the label on-pack is super critical and can't leave the discussion, it's being asked to do too much of the consumer education.” GreenBlue said in its announcement that “as EPR legislation compels companies to support consumer education, we’re preparing to invite our base of 800 members to participate in a consumer education initiative.” 

Organizers will share more about the path forward for H2R at the How2Recycle Summit, including additional program changes, this Thursday in Chicago.