中文Here is a fact that should keep every packaging engineer awake: a label that sticks beautifully to a PET tray can also be the reason that tray never gets recycled properly. The adhesive stays behind, contaminates the flake, and suddenly your “recyclable” packaging is anything but. Avery Dennison says it has just taken a meaningful bite out of that problem — and earned a first to prove it.
The company received RecyClass Technology Approvals for pressure-sensitive labels on PET trays. According to Avery Dennison, this is a market first, covering its AD CleanFlake Thermal PP White (S7000ER) and the newly introduced AD CleanFlake Chilled Thermal PP White (C7010ER). The timing is deliberate: the European Union’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, the PPWR, is bearing down on the industry.
What the approval actually means
RecyClass evaluated both technologies and confirmed they are compatible with clear transparent and coloured transparent PET thermoform recycling streams using existing European recycling processes. In plain terms: when these labelled trays go through caustic hot washing, the label and its adhesive are designed to detach cleanly and leave no significant residue on the tray.
Why does that matter? Because under RecyClass guidelines and the EN 18120-5 standard, labels on PET thermoforms must separate during washing and not gunk up the recycled material. Contaminated flake is worth less, gets rejected more, and drags down the whole stream. Clean separation is the difference between high-quality recycled PET and landfill.
The chilled twist
The new Chilled adhesive is the clever bit. It is built for PET trays in chilled environments — high tack at low temperatures, and compatible with air-blown dispensing. That lets converters and brand owners shift from paper to film labels while keeping the same direct thermal printing technology. So you get the performance of film without torching your recyclability story.
Why brands should care about the money
Avery Dennison notes that, depending on the full package design, using RecyClass-approved label tech can contribute to a high recyclability classification — potentially Class A. And here is the part procurement teams will love: components that meet RecyClass Design for Recycling Guidelines may also contribute to lower Extended Producer Responsibility fees in countries where eco-modulation applies.
In other words, the right label can literally lower your regulatory bill while improving your environmental one. That is rare — a genuine win-win in a market drowning in trade-offs.
Thirteen years in the making
Vincenzo Palumbo, marketing manager for variable information labels at Avery Dennison, pointed out that the AD CleanFlake portfolio was developed 13 years ago for PET bottle recycling. The new approval shows it also plays nicely with PET thermoforms. “This approval showcases our leadership in bringing to market technologies designed to help customers prepare for upcoming recyclability requirements without compromising on convenience, flexibility and performance,” he said.
That last phrase is the tightrope every materials supplier walks: prepare for regulation without making the product worse to use. Too often “sustainable” means “harder to run.” Avery Dennison is arguing this time it does not.
The bigger picture
As the PPWR ratchets up recycled-content and recyclability demands across Europe, the boring components — adhesives, label constructions — will decide which packages pass and which fail. A first-of-its-kind approval like this is a signal that the supply chain is finally engineering for the bin, not just the shelf.
For brand owners and converters, the lesson is clear: recyclability is now designed in at the label level. Choose wisely, and your tray comes back as high-grade flake. Choose carelessly, and it becomes someone else’s headache.
Source: Labels & Labeling (October 20, 2026).
