Evaluation Metric
Conformity to EN 13430 Recyclability requires packaging to be recovered through material recycling processes that yield secondary raw materials suitable for manufacturing new paper and board goods without degrading intrinsic structural properties. Mill audits verify that wet strength agents and barrier coatings applied during converting do not inhibit repulping efficiency or cause sticky contaminants in screening machinery. The regulation governs secondary production loops inside designated facilities handling cellulose substrates and stops applying once pulp slurry enters non-paper industrial streams.
Board mills measure incoming bale contamination against strict impurity thresholds, rejecting consignments carrying excessive plastic lamination or residual hotmelt adhesives.
Process Verification
Testing protocols simulate industrial pulper action by agitating shredded samples in a warm aqueous solution to determine disintegration rates and yield percentages. Laboratory screens catch contraries while optical scanners quantify residual ink and pigment detachment from the cellulose matrix. Converters must document chemical additions prior to dispatch so processing plants anticipate surfactant loads and adjust enzyme concentrations accordingly.
Failure to meet disintegration parameters leads to downcycling into lower-grade corrugated media or complete rejection at the receiving weighbridge.
Material Recovery
Paper producers balance fibre yield against barrier performance because high-barrier wax treatments protect perishable contents yet choke industrial pulping filters with insoluble fragments. Mills optimize mechanical cleaning cascades to separate thermoplastic extrusion layers from wet strength cellulose without severing individual fibres or shortening staple lengths. Strict adherence to technical thresholds ensures secondary pulp maintains tensile strength comparable to virgin stock.
EN 13430 Recyclability standardizes end-of-life evaluation for cellulose containers across European markets.