COLOGNE, GERMANY — Steinert has been named a finalist in the Sustainability Awards 2026 for its artificial intelligence (AI)-based sorting technology that enables the separation of post-consumer PET food trays from other PET packaging, supporting closed-loop recycling for food-contact applications.

The technology has been shortlisted in the Driving the Circular Economy category and is already being used at industrial scale, according to the company.

AI Improves PET Tray Identification

One of the challenges in PET recycling is distinguishing food-grade PET trays from visually similar non-food PET packaging.

Steinert’s AI-based sorting program is designed to identify and separate post-consumer PET food trays, allowing them to be recycled back into new food packaging.

According to the company, this enables tray-to-tray recycling at commercial scale, supporting higher-value recycling compared with conventional mixed PET streams.

Supporting Circular Packaging

The company said the project demonstrates that food-safe recycling of PET trays can be achieved under industrial operating conditions rather than remaining at the pilot or demonstration stage.

By improving sorting accuracy, the technology aims to:

• Increase recovery of food-grade PET trays
• Improve recycled material quality
• Support closed-loop food packaging recycling
• Reduce the amount of recyclable PET sent to lower-value applications

The approach contributes to circular economy objectives by keeping packaging materials in food-contact applications for multiple life cycles.

Commercial Deployment Underway

Steinert said the technology is already being used by a customer in commercial recycling operations serving international markets.

The company plans to expand deployment by introducing the AI sorting system to additional recycling facilities and countries.

Beyond PET trays, Steinert is also applying similar AI-based image recognition technologies to other material sorting applications that have traditionally been difficult to automate.

Sustainability Awards 2026

The winners of the Sustainability Awards 2026 will be announced on 11 November 2026 during the Sustainable Packaging Summit, taking place from 10–12 November in Utrecht, Netherlands.

The event brings together stakeholders from across the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) value chain, including packaging manufacturers, recyclers, policymakers, investors and non-governmental organizations to discuss strategies for advancing sustainable packaging and circular economy initiatives.

Last Updated on 23/07/2026 by Jota Machinery