28 September 2026 – The Consumer Goods Forum’s (CGF) Plastic Waste Coalition of Action has today released a paper showing how packaging design changes can improve recycling outcomes, reduce the amount of plastic waste that ends up in the environment and raise living standards for sector workers in low and middle-income countries (LMICs).

As improving the collection and recycling of packaging becomes a growing priority for many countries, packaging design is emerging as an important lever for improving waste management. Currently, packaging can be difficult to recycle because it contains mixed materials, problematic labels or hard-to-remove components. This contributes to increased costs throughout the recycling value chain and a reduction in the value of recyclable materials, while making it harder for recycling systems to operate efficiently.

The reduction in the value of recyclable materials is felt most acutely by informal waste workers in LMICs, who collect and sort around 27 million metric tonnes of plastic waste each year, equivalent to approximately 60% of all plastic recovered for recycling globally. 

Though waste pickers play a significant role in the value chain and make a substantial economic and social contribution, their incomes are closely tied to the value of the materials they collect. This means packaging that is difficult to recycle can reduce earnings, while increasing the time spent handling materials that ultimately cannot be recycled.

The paper contains three specific recommendations for governments, industry associations and producers to consider when developing packaging design requirements, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) approaches and national standards. Titled “Packaging design in low- and middle-income countries: Designing for circularity to improve recycling economics and benefit informal waste workers’ livelihoods”, the resource recommends that decision makers involved in recycling take the following steps:

• Increase the recycling value of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles. The paper suggests using uncoloured PET, or transparent blue or green PET where appropriate. 
• Make PET bottles and rigid High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastic packaging easier to recycle. This includes ensuring that labels, adhesives, inks, closures, liners and seals are compatible with recycling. Use minimal or moderate direct printing on packaging, reserving space for essential information where possible. Excessive printing or the use of unsuitable inks can affect recyclability and reduce the quality of recycled material streams. Avoid fillers that increase packaging density above 1g/cm³.
• Provide clear recycling instructions on packaging. Clear information on material composition and recycling or reuse can help informal waste workers identify and sort higher-value rigid plastics, particularly in markets where multiple languages are spoken or literacy levels vary.

Cédric Dever, Director of the Plastic Waste Coalition of Action, The Consumer Goods Forum said: “Packaging design can play a key role in building more circular and inclusive waste management systems. This paper shows how relatively simple design choices can make packaging easier and more valuable to collect and recycle, helping to keep materials in circulation while supporting the millions of informal waste workers who are at the heart of collection and sorting systems in many low and middle-income countries.”

For informal waste workers, these improvements can translate directly into higher earnings. The paper highlights that clear PET bottles can command significantly higher prices than coloured alternatives, with clear PET selling for around three times more than coloured PET in Colombia and collectors in Indonesia receiving around 66% more for clear PET. 

The paper also demonstrates that design changes can help reduce environmental pollution by increasing the value of materials and strengthening incentives for collection. In Indonesia, for example, 75% of plastic that leaks into the environment is low-value multi-layer packaging, demonstrating how material value can influence collection rates. 

Beyond these benefits, the paper highlights how packaging designed for recycling can strengthen recycling systems as a whole. Packaging that is easier to sort and process can reduce contamination, improve the quality and consistency of recycled feedstock, and help recyclers meet buyer requirements more effectively. In turn, this can support the growth of domestic recycling industries, increase the availability of high-quality recycled materials and help keep valuable resources in circulation for longer.

Download the paper: https://www.theconsumergoodsforum.com/packaging-design-in-low-and-middle-income-countries/