Patented stand-up pouch: the ecological all-rounder

Within the scope of the Recyclate Initiative, Werner & Mertz has reached still another milestone on the way to a genuine circular economy. The world’s first completely recyclable pouch is made of a monomaterial (polyethylene) with removable label in accordance with the Cradle to Cradle^® Principle. The result of a four-year joint project by Werner & Mertz and the global packaging and paper firm Mondi, the innovative, patented pouch design solves the problem of recycling printed plastic. Eighty-five percent of all the packaging material is not printed and can therefore be recycled without any loss of quality. Because the remaining 15 percent, the printed label, is free of adhesives and bonding agents, it too can flow back into new uses. The complete recyclability of the pouch was recently confirmed by the independent Institute Interseroch and HTP Cyclos. Interseroh certified that the stand-up pouch has “very good recyclability that cannot be optimized any further.”

Reduce-Reuse-Recycle:

The patented stand-up pouch is the first packaging that complies with the three Rs – reduce, reuse and recycle. The pouch can be recycled completely, so the plastic remains in the closed material loop (recycle). Compared to a bottle, the pouch saves 70 percent on packaging material for the same amount of product (reduce). Thanks to the refill packaging, the original product bottle can be refilled repeatedly (reuse). Still another special feature: the original bottles for Werner & Mertz Frosch consumer brand are made of 100 percent used plastic from post-consumer household waste collections.