Part 1 of EN 18120 has been listed as an active standard by the Belgian standards organisation NBN since 15 April, reports Euwid.

According to Euwid, this means that the European foundational part for the technical assessment of the recyclability of plastic packaging is now available. The series, for which the CEN/TC 261 “Packaging” technical committee is responsible, is also said to be visible in the publication or catalogue lists of several national standards bodies. A summary published for EN 18120-1 on the NBN website states that the standard provides both a framework and principles for the preparation of ‘Design for Recycling’ documents, in order to assess the extent to which the characteristics of plastic packaging are compatible with applicable collection, sorting and recycling processes. The document covers all packaging, including separate components, consisting predominantly of plastic. It aims to provide a uniform approach to guidelines and protocols for every polymer and every format. Euwid points out that the EN 18120 series of standards is closely linked to the EU Packaging Regulation (PPWR). According to Euwid, the standards developed by the European standardisation organisations are to be taken into account in the Design for Recycling criteria of the Regulation, for which the EU Commission has announced delegated acts by early 2028.
 
According to the IK Industrial Association for Plastic Packaging, cited by Euwid, the newly published series of standards covers key plastic categories and already provides detailed protocols for various types of rigid and flexible packaging. According to a comment by IK’s Chief Executive Dr Martin Engelmann on LinkedIn, the standard published in April 2026 defines design-for-recycling criteria for PET bottles, other dimensionally stable PET packaging, flexible and rigid packaging made of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), as well as for packaging made of polystyrene (PS), expanded polystyrene (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS) in accordance with Table 1 of Annex II of the PPWR in categories 7 and 8, as well as 10 to 16. Engelmann also points out that an immediate revision of the standard is already planned “to bring the standards into line with the format of the standards developed in parallel for the remaining categories”.
 
Sources:

• euwid-recycling.de, LinkedIn Post Martin Engelmann (23.4.2026)
• Photo: © IK