Celebrating & showcasing innovations in packaging design
Innovation is a significant driver of the recovered materials economy. This Program was established to encourage innovators to conduct Critical Guidance testing and confirm any impact of new plastics designs and components on recycling. Ideally, package manufacturers and brands innovate recycling-compatible package design, and plastic reclaimers innovate to accept and process more diverse supply streams into a wider range of recycled content products.
Which APR Recognition Program is right for me?
Meets APR Preferred Guidance
For components or complete package types listed as a program candidate.
Critical Guidance
For innovations new to your company or the industry. You may also seek Bottle-to-Bottle recognition.
Responsible Innovation
For new innovations that may benefit the industry, but current Critical Guidance protocols do not yet include the subject of the innovation.
Applications Guidance
For new technologies or design components that solve long-standing problems in sustainable package design.
Contact an APR-approved Candidate Testing Laboratory to get started.
APR Critical Guidance Recognition Recipients
APR commends the following companies that have completed rigorous testing to ensure their products meet the APR Design® Guide for Plastics Recyclability.
Since its inception, the APR Design® Recognition Program has recognized over 30 different companies for approximately 50 innovations that have collectively improved plastic recycling feedstocks. Every year new innovations are recognized, and most of these are now commercially available and widely used by converters and brands helping to create a circular economy for plastic packaging. Consumer Brand Companies may seek Critical Guidance Recognition to support commercialization of a new technology, while other innovators may use APR Recognition in their sales and marketing programs.
Plastic Type Company Name Innovation Category Recognition Level Innovation Trade Name PET ColorMatrix Europe Additives Applications Guidance ColorMatrix™ SmartHeat RHC reheat and process aid for PET bottles PET Plastipak Label Inks Applications Guidance Four color Direct Object Printing™ technology with 2.5% and less surface coverage PET Plastipak Label Inks Applications Guidance Four color (white, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) Direct Object Printing™ technology with up to and including 70% surface coverage on a PET bottle PET Auriga Polymers Resin Applications Guidance Polyclear® EBM PET 5505 PET Auriga Polymers Resin Applications Guidance Polyclear® EBM PET 5505 PET ColorMatrix Additives Critical Guidance HyCat and Ultimate UV390™ PET KHS Corpoplast Barrier materials Critical Guidance FreshSafe-PET® PET Proctor & Gamble Closures & Dispensers Critical Guidance PET bottle and all-polymer valve, seal, and dip tube assembly PET Plastipak Label Inks Critical Guidance Four color (white, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) Direct Object Printing™ technology with up to and including 70% surface coverage on a PET bottle PET Spear Incorporated PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance Spear®RC clear #11581 and Spear®RC white #11582 PET Polysack Flexible Packaging Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance Polyphane™ FitSleeve Label with 527 ink system PET SKC, Inc. Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance SKC EcolabelTM used with MCC DNX53TM inking system PET Taghleef Industries and Brook & Whittle Limited Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance Floatable 45 micron TDS65 sleeve label substrate undecorated and converted sleeve label substrate gravure printed by Brook & Whittle Ltd. PET UPM Raflatac Inc. PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance RW85C acrylic emulsion adhesive and clear or white BOPP films undecorated labels covering 40% or less of the area of a PET bottle PET CCL Label PS Labels Critical Guidance LD-PSL System PET FLEXcon Company, Inc. PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance Undecorated optiFLEX ecoFOCUS PP 200 H Clear, optiFLEX ecoFOCUS PP 230 H White, and optiFLEX ecoFOCUS MPP 200 H Silver topcoated pressure sensitive labels, all with V-52RE adhesive PET Golden Manufacturers PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance FIJI Water pressure sensitive label PET Green Bay Packaging PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance GreenCycle™ 2.4 mil white top-coated BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate and 1.85 Mil Clear BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate, both with 776S acrylic emulsion adhesive PET Green Bay Packaging PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance GreenCycle™ 2.4 mil white top-coated BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate (024TL) and 1.85 Mil Clear BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate (018CT), both with 776S acrylic emulsion adhesive PET Green Bay Packaging PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance GreenCycle™ 2.4 mil white top-coated BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate (24WCT) with 776S adhesive PET The Kennedy Group PS Labels Critical Guidance PureVue™ White or Clear Recyclable Pressure Sensitive Labels PET Mactac PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance 2.6 mil white top-coated BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate and 2.0 mil clear top-coated BOPP pressure sensitive label substrate, both with PUREfloatTM emulsion acrylic adhesive PET Multi-Color Corp. PS Labels Critical Guidance Multi-Color recycLABEL™ Clear (PSPL78411, PSPL78413) and recycLABEL™ White (PSPL78412, PSPL78414) PET Multi-Color Corp. Sleeve labels Critical Guidance Roll-On Shrink-On (ROSO) label with MCC Colorfast™ Inks PET Avery Dennison Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance CleanFlake™ PET CCL Label Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance EcoCrys™ PET Fort Dearborn Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance Recycle Friendly washable ink system printed on SKC Ecolabel™ PET Eastman Chemical Company Sleeve labels Critical Guidance Eastman Embrace Encore® & Eastman Embrace Float® PET Eastman, Bonset, Siegwerk Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance Aquantum primer and Sicura inks Printed on Bonset America’s Bonpet Renew™ crystallizable shrink film, made with Eastman Chemical’s Embrace Encore™ resin PET Eastman, Bonset, Sun Chem Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance Bonpet Renew™ crystallizable shrink film, made with Eastman Chemical’s Embrace Encore™ resin, and printed with Sun Chemical’s SunSpectro® SolvaWash GR washable ink system PET Far Eastern New Century Corp Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance TopGreen® PET American Fuji Seal Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance shrink film “FVH2-05” & non-bleeding ink system “IA1-L” PET American Fuji Seal Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance RecShrink PET INX International Ink Co. Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance Genesis GS™ PET Klockner Pentaplast Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance Pentalabel® ClearFloat™ LC8CF (previously referenced as LC8CV) and TC8CF (previously referenced as TC8CV) PET Klockner Pentaplast Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance Pentalabel® SmartCycle™ PET DEKRON GmbH Label Inks Critical Guidance DecoType Select PET Multi-Color Corp. Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance recycLABEL™ Clear (HSLPE10002) shrink sleeve label with white, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black decoration PET Multi-Color Corp. Sleeve Labels/inks Critical Guidance MultiColorTM washable ink system on Bonset America’s Bonpet Renew™ Shrink Film made from Eastman Chemical’s Embrace Encore™ resin PET Multi-Plastics, Inc. Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance EnviroCycle® 4200 Series copolyester heat shrinkable sleeve film substrate PET Sleever International Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance LDPET shrink sleeve labels PET UPM Raflatac Inc. Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance RafShrink PO MDO 40 and RafShrink PO MDO 40 HS PET UPM Raflatac Inc. Sleeve Labels Critical Guidance RafShrink PO MDO 40 LS and RafShrink PO TDO 45 HS PET Auriga Polymers Resin Critical Guidance PolyClear® EBM PET 5506 PET DAK Americas LLC Resin Critical Guidance Array™ EBM 5860 and Array™ EBM 5861 PET DAK Americas LLC Resin Critical Guidance Laser+® 7000 (B92A) PET DAK Americas LLC Resin Critical Guidance Array™ EBM 5862 PET Eastman Chemical Company Resin Critical Guidance Aspira™ One PET Eastman Chemical Company Resin Critical Guidance Eastar™ polyester E8001 PET Indorama Ventures Resin Critical Guidance PolyClear® EBM PET 5505 PET Indorama Ventures Resin Critical Guidance PolyClear® EBM PET 5507 PET Mitsubishi Chemical Resin Critical Guidance BK 6180 PET Wellman, Inc. Resin Critical Guidance PermaClear® Ti842 PET Sun Chemical Corp. Adhesives Responsible Innovation SunLam™ ADHA100 HDPE Inhance Technologies Barrier materials Applications Guidance FluoroSeal® fluorination coating HDPE Inhance Technologies Barrier materials Applications Guidance Enkase™ fluorination coating HDPE Naked Juice and PepsiCo Barrier materials Applications Guidance Multilayer container consisting of homopolymer high density polyethylene, a specific ethylene vinyl alcohol barrier layer, and a specific material tie layer HDPE Kim Pack Company Barrier materials Applications Guidance HDPE Living Proof Barrier materials Critical Guidance HDPE Plastipak Label Inks Critical Guidance HDPE Plastipak Label Inks Critical Guidance HDPE Avery Dennison PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance HDPE Multi-Color Corp. PS Labels/adhesives Critical Guidance HDPE Albea S.A. Barrier materials Critical Guidance HDPE Berry Global Tube Critical Guidance HDPE Colgate-Palmolive Barrier, Label Inks, Attachments Critical Guidance HDPE Colgate-Palmolive Barrier, Label Inks, Attachments Critical Guidance HDPE Essel Propack Limited Barrier materials Critical Guidance HDPE Essel Propack Limited Barrier materials Critical Guidance HDPE Essel Propack Limited Barrier materials Critical Guidance PE Film Amcor Additives Responsible Innovation PE Film Dow Chemical Additives Responsible Innovation PP Milliken Additives Critical Guidance PP Berry Plastics Resin Responsible Innovation
