Assessment Standard
Guidelines developed by the Confederation of European Paper Industries establish a harmonized laboratory method to evaluate how paper-based packaging behaves in standard recycling mills. This framework simulates industrial repulping to determine if a material can be successfully processed without causing operational issues. Evaluation of cepi recyclability focuses on the yield of usable fibres and the rejection rate of non-paper elements.
It provides a standardized baseline for mills and converters across Europe.
Laboratory Protocol
Standardized testing involves disintegrating the packaging sample in water under controlled temperature and agitation conditions. This phase separates the paper fibres from coatings, adhesives and foil layers to measure the percentage of recovered material. Coarse and fine screening steps then identify the volume of unusable residues that would be discarded during commercial processing.
Sourcing Consequence
Specifying materials that meet these European testing thresholds helps brand owners ensure their packaging complies with national circular economy targets. Converting factories use the results to select barrier treatments that do not clog mill filters or contaminate the recovered paper stream. These choices can prevent costly rejection of finished board shipments by municipal recycling facilities.
Adherence to this protocol has become a common requirement in international retail procurement contracts, where verifiable circular economy metrics are increasingly used to screen potential packaging suppliers.