For packaging companies, environmental claims are moving beyond marketing language. A statement that packaging is “recyclable,” contains recycled material or has a lower carbon footprint increasingly needs a clear evidence trail behind it.

That evidence can involve material specifications, laboratory testing, supplier declarations, certifications, recyclability assessments and life-cycle data.

The result is an important change for the packaging industry: sustainability claims are increasingly becoming evidence claims.

This affects far more than the marketing department. Packaging developers, converters, raw-material suppliers, procurement teams, sustainability specialists and brands may all contribute information needed to substantiate what eventually appears on a package or in advertising.

EU and UK Rules Raise the Bar for Green Claims

Regulation is accelerating this transition.

EU member states were required to transpose the Directive on empowering consumers for the green transition by 27 March 2026, with the new rules applying from 27 September 2026.

The legislation strengthens protections against misleading environmental marketing, including certain generic environmental claims that cannot be demonstrated.

In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority’s Green Claims Code similarly expects environmental claims to be clear, accurate and supported by credible evidence.

The central question for packaging businesses is becoming relatively simple:

What exactly are you claiming, how did you measure it, and what evidence can you provide?

Answering those questions can be considerably more complicated.

Why “Recyclable” Is Not Always a Simple Claim

Consider a common statement:

“This packaging is recyclable.”

Whether that claim is appropriate may depend on the complete packaging structure rather than simply its principal material.

A paper package, for example, could contain coatings, adhesives, barrier layers, windows, labels or closures. Each component may influence how the finished package behaves during collection, sorting and recycling.

Infrastructure also matters.

A material being technically capable of recycling does not necessarily mean that the finished package will actually be collected, sorted and recycled within the relevant market.

The same issue occurs with other environmental terminology.

A compostable package may require industrial composting rather than home composting.

A claim of 50% recycled content requires a defensible method for calculating that percentage.

And saying packaging has a 30% lower carbon footprint immediately raises further questions: lower than what, measured across which life-cycle stages, using which methodology?

Qualifications and boundaries therefore matter almost as much as the headline claim.

Packaging Companies Need an Evidence Trail

Different claims can require substantially different supporting information.

Environmental claim	Evidence that may be relevant
Recyclable	Material composition, component compatibility, recyclability assessment and relevant collection/sorting conditions
Contains 50% recycled plastic	Material specifications, supplier records and recycled-content calculation methodology
Compostable	Applicable testing or certification and defined composting conditions
30% lower carbon footprint	Comparator, methodology, system boundary and emissions data
Uses less material	Previous and current specifications, packaging weights and comparison methodology

These are not universal compliance checklists. The evidence required depends on the precise wording, packaging format, jurisdiction and context.

The important principle is that the evidence should match the scope of the claim.

A narrow assessment should not automatically be used to support a much broader environmental statement.

Supplier Data Becomes Part of Sustainability Compliance

This creates another complication: packaging companies rarely control every piece of relevant information themselves.

Consider a packaged consumer product.

The brand communicating an environmental claim might obtain supporting information from a packaging converter. The converter may depend on data supplied by a paper mill, polymer producer, coating manufacturer or adhesive supplier.

Testing laboratories, recyclers and certification organizations can add further layers.

The evidence chain can therefore extend across several companies.

UK CMA guidance published in January 2026 specifically addresses green claims across supply chains and emphasizes cooperation among suppliers, manufacturers, brands and retailers.

For packaging procurement, this makes environmental documentation increasingly relevant to normal supplier management.

Specifications, certificates, recycled-content documentation, recyclability test results and related records may need to be collected systematically rather than requested only after somebody challenges a claim.

That has operational consequences.

If adequate documentation is unavailable, businesses could face additional testing, delayed packaging approvals or changes to artwork and environmental messaging.

Substantiation therefore increasingly needs to happen before the claim reaches the finished package.

PPWR Connects Packaging Claims With Technical Documentation

The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) pushes the relationship between technical performance and environmental communication further.

PPWR establishes requirements affecting areas including packaging recyclability, recycled content and labelling.

Importantly, Article 14 addresses environmental claims relating to packaging properties covered by the regulation.

Such claims can only concern packaging properties exceeding the relevant minimum PPWR requirements. Companies must also specify whether the claim relates to a packaging unit, part of that unit or all packaging placed on the market by the economic operator.

Compliance with relevant requirements must be demonstrated through technical documentation.

That creates a direct connection between what happens in engineering and what happens in marketing.

The technical file behind a package is no longer necessarily separate from the environmental message presented to customers.

Recyclability Requirements Will Become Progressively Stricter

The PPWR also introduces a longer-term framework for packaging recyclability.

From 2030, relevant packaging will need to satisfy recyclability performance requirements under the regulation, with grades A, B or C forming part of the framework.

From 2035, recycled-at-scale considerations are added to the assessment.

By 2038, packaging subject to the requirements will generally need to achieve grade A or B.

Minimum recycled-content requirements for certain plastic packaging formats are also scheduled to apply from 2030.

For packaging manufacturers, these changes mean environmental performance will increasingly need to be translated into measurable and documentable characteristics.

Sustainability Data Becomes a Commercial Asset

This regulatory shift also creates a business opportunity.

A converter that can provide reliable documentation covering packaging composition, recycled content or recyclability can make life considerably easier for customers trying to substantiate their own environmental communications.

Similarly, material suppliers capable of providing clear and traceable sustainability data may become more valuable within packaging development projects.

This changes the role of environmental information.

It is no longer only something collected for an ESG report.

It can influence supplier qualification, packaging development, artwork approval, regulatory compliance and market access.

Companies that organize this information effectively may also respond faster when customers, retailers or regulators request substantiation.

The Claim and Evidence Need to Travel Together

Packaging sustainability communication is therefore becoming more technical.

Terms such as “green,” “environmentally friendly” or “sustainable” provide little information about the specific characteristic being communicated.

More defensible claims tend to narrow the scope: recycled content, material reduction, verified recyclability or a measured emissions reduction against a clearly identified baseline.

That does not mean every environmental statement requires an LCA or third-party certification.

It means businesses need evidence appropriate to the statement they choose to make.

For packaging companies, the emerging workflow is increasingly:

design → measure → document → verify → claim

rather than developing the packaging first and looking for environmental language afterwards.

As regulation becomes stricter, making an attractive green claim may remain easy.

Being able to prove it is becoming the more valuable capability.

Last Updated on 21/08/2026 by Jota Machinery