PepsiCo, Ferrero and Mondelēz International are among the contributors to HolyGrail 2030’s latest project, which will test the intelligent sorting and recycling of polypropylene snack packets into new food packaging.
The project aims to use digital watermarks and advanced recycling to demonstrate that food-grade recycled polypropylene derived from flexible packaging is technically, economically, and environmentally viable.
Current recycling systems cannot distinguish between flexible food packaging and non-food packaging, the partners explain. This leaves no authorized route for reprocessing recycled, flexible polypropylene back into food packaging.
Even in sorting centres that currently make use of robots, infrared cameras, and other advanced technologies, the partners assert that various packages cannot be optimally detected and still end up in the wrong stream. Distinguishing between food and non-food packaging is also becoming important.
In response, the project aims to create a new material flow and align with the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which requires food packaging to contain at least 10% recycled material by 2030 – an expectation set to be especially challenging for flexible polypropylene.
It comes under the existing HolyGrail 2030 project, which is facilitated by AIM, the European Brands Association; this international consortium aims to demonstrate the business value of digital watermarking, drive its adoption at scale, and generate new, high-quality post-consumer recyclate streams. Other project partners include Pladis, Hündgen Entsorgung, Digimarc, Pellenc ST, and Fost Plus.
Flexible polypropylene packaging for snacks and food is currently being printed with a digital watermark and distributed on the Belgian market through the normal channels. Once collected via the PMD bag, the bag is undergoing sorting trials at Hündgen Entsorgung’s facility in Swisstal, Germany; special cameras will detect the digital watermark and automatically separate food and non-food packaging.
Starting in Q4 2026, the food polypropylene stream will undergo testing through multiple advanced recycling technologies. The partners expect to turn the recyclates into new films between December 2026 and January 2027, testing their suitability for existing packaging applications.
The recyclates and films will also be tested for compliance with European Food Safety Guidelines (EFSA) from Q1 2027.
Finally, the findings will be published in the HolyGrail 2030 Final Report next year. This will include insights into sorting efficiency, the recyclate’s suitability for food packaging, and its economic feasibility.
Fost Plus expects to undertake its evaluation and decision next year, with full implementation currently scheduled for 2029.
The project will take place in Belgium, reportedly making it the first country to conduct a large-scale field test with flexible packaging that is launched on the market and used by customers. This will test whether the technology works in real-world conditions, where the packaging can be folded, soiled or damaged in use.
Last year, Packaging Europe brand director Tim Sykes spoke to AIM’s Margherita Trombetti, Mondelēz’s Richard Akkermans, and Arla Foods’ Grane Maaløe on the Packaging Europe podcast. Together, they discussed the final industrial scale tests of the advanced sorting platform’s previous stage, HolyGrail 2.0, and the anticipated progress of HolyGrail 2030.
At that time, the latest industrial-scale sorting trials were said to exceed a detection efficiency of over 90% and a daily detection rate of almost 56,000 items of post-household rigid packaging. Brand owners such as Mondelēz, Arla Foods, and Procter & Gamble participated in the trials, claiming to have enhanced their SKUs with digital watermarks.
More recently, the Flexible Plastic Fund – a coalition featuring Ecosurety, CEFLEX, RECOUP and WRAP, among others – has launched FlexCircular, an initiative intended to help the UK recycle up to 400,000 tonnes of post-consumer flexible packaging by 2030.
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