Most snack, coffee and pet-food packs are thin composites rather than single films—polyolefins for seal and toughness, EVOH or metallised layers for barrier, inks and adhesives for appeal and integrity.

That recipe delivers shelf life with minimal weight, yet it complicates recycling.

End-of-life packaging for flexible multilayers sits where performance, infrastructure and economics intersect: how to keep barrier and machinability while creating credible routes back into material value.

For the packaging industry, the practical path is threefold—simplify structures, design for deconstruction or compatibility, and build stable offtake for the recyclate that results.

Why flexible multilayer packaging struggles at end of life

Recycling works when materials are easy to collect, identify and remanufacture into products people actually buy. Multilayer films strain each step.

Collection and sorting
Most kerbside schemes still favour rigid plastics, metals and fibre. Films tangle in screens, ride airflows and often end up as residue.

Where film collection exists, it prioritises clear polyethylene (PE) because near-infrared (NIR) sorters “see” it reliably. Multilayers that blend PE with polypropylene (PP), polyamide (PA), PET, EVOH or aluminium look mixed to sensors, lowering bale value.

Heavy ink coverage or carbon-black pigments can further confuse optics.

Reprocessing quality
Mechanical recycling wants mono-material streams. Incompatible layers behave like contaminants, causing gels, odour and brittle regrind.

Metallised films shed flakes into the melt; tough adhesives and inks survive washing to become inclusions.

Producing film-grade PCR demands clean, consistent feed with known additives and inks—conditions multilayers seldom provide without design changes.

Market demand
Even when films are captured, end markets decide their fate.

Clear PE from store-drop programmes can re-enter bin liners or simple film; mixed multilayers often downcycle into low-spec products or divert to energy recovery when demand softens.

A durable outlet for film-to-film or film-to-moulding needs both quality feedstock and specifications that accept realistic colour and property ranges.

Designing flexible packaging for workable recovery

The most reliable end-of-life strategy is to avoid complicated blends.

Where performance demands complexity, aim for separation or compatibility under standard recycling conditions.

Go mono-material where you can

PE-rich or PP-rich laminates with thin functional layers are today’s workhorses of recyclable flexible packaging.

Examples include PE//EVOH//PE, all-PP laminates using cast PP for seal and oriented PP for stiffness, or clear-barrier coatings that replace PET or PA. Keep the dominant polymer at ≥90–95% by weight where guidelines require.

Shift barrier from PET/PA to low-loading EVOH or to coatings compatible with the base polymer.

Design for deconstruction

If a second material is unavoidable, make it let go. Use alkali-soluble tie layers, dispersion adhesives or heat-reversible bonds so laminates split during hot-wash steps, improving base polymer purity.

For decoration, specify float-and-sink sleeve behaviour, wash-off inks and switchable label adhesives so graphics release without smearing residue onto the film.

Help the sorter see the polymer

Choose NIR-detectable pigments, including alternatives to carbon black.

Keep windows clear of heavy ink; reverse-print behind a thin compatible layer to protect graphics yet ease de-inking.

Place barcodes away from reflective metallisation to reduce misreads in automated sorting.

Specify adhesives with the next life in mind

Solventless PU remains a mainstay for speed and clarity, but manage post-cure to control odour and NIAS.

Where feasible, use adhesive systems validated to delaminate in hot caustic or hydrolysis.

On PE and PET films, alkali wash-off PSAs lift label yield dramatically.

Thin, functional barriers

EVOH at low percentages within PE or PP often hits oxygen targets without crippling recyclability. Moisture-sensitive goods may suit dispersion or plasma coatings rather than discrete incompatible films.

Metallisation brings stellar OTR but complicates detection and melt purity; keep layers ultra-thin, avoid full-coverage prints over metal, or test clear-barrier substitutes.

Prove it, don’t just claim it

Anchor briefs to recognised design-for-recycling guidelines in your markets. Run lab-scale sort and wash trials on printed, glued packs—not just base films.

Capture NIR response, wash-off, melt flow, odour and pellet colour. Share data early with reprocessors; they know what actually runs.

Credible end-of-life routes beyond standard mechanics

Some high-barrier or safety-critical uses can’t yet meet performance with mono-material alone. In those cases, build viable alternatives while continuing to simplify structures for the future.

Dissolution (solvent-based purification)

Selective dissolution rescues the target polymer (often PE or PP), filtering out inks, adhesives and barrier layers before precipitating a cleaner resin.

 Outputs can suit film and moulding with better optics and odour than mixed-film recyclate.

Success depends on pre-sorting, solvent handling and agreed specs between recyclers and converters.

Chemical recycling to monomers or oils

Pyrolysis and depolymerisation convert mixed polyolefins and some multilayers to hydrocarbons or monomers.

With mass-balance accounting, these routes can support recycled-content claims in demanding applications.

Energy use, yields and feed preparation matter; use chemical recycling to complement, not displace, mechanical routes—targeting fractions that are uneconomic to recycle mechanically.

Reuse in closed loops

In B2B channels, robust liners and pouches can be washed and redeployed. Each cycle displaces multiple single-use packs and postpones end-of-life.

The case is strongest where reverse logistics already exists and hygiene is manageable.

Procurement that stabilises demand

Lock in offtake for film PCR or purified polymer with realistic specifications—tolerating minor colour drift, setting odour thresholds, matching grades to non-food where appropriate.

Forward contracts and quality-band pricing encourage investment in washing, de-inking or dissolution lines.

Governance, data and communication that keep claims honest

End-of-life packaging outcomes hinge on targets, aligned suppliers and clear consumer guidance, not just materials.

Pick a few KPIs and track them

Measure recycled content by polymer, share of SKUs designed to a guideline, bale acceptance rates, wash yield, melt-index stability and odour scores.

Report actual tonnes through each route (kerbside, store-drop, take-back, dissolution, chemical recycling, energy recovery).

Numbers reveal whether “recyclable” packs are being recycled.

Align EPR, labels and specs

Extended Producer Responsibility fees and recyclability labels vary by region.

Map your markets, design to the strictest viable denominator, and keep on-pack language plain: if store-drop is the route, say so; if return-with-delivery applies, print it. Avoid aspirational icons that drive wish-cycling.

Manage NIAS and food-contact

Ink, adhesive and additive choices affect safety and recyclability. Use low-migration systems, verify cure and residuals, and run tight change control.

If recycled content will touch food via mass balance or mechanical routes, keep supplier declarations and analytical data audit-ready.

Work directly with recyclers

Share layer stacks, ink sets and adhesive specs. Invite feedback on coating loads, metallisation and slip packages that affect wash and melt.

Trial pre-launch runs on real equipment to catch surprises before artwork is signed off.

Keep consumer instructions simple

A small panel naming the polymer family (“PE film”), the route (“store drop-off” or “kerbside where accepted”) and a QR to local options raises capture and lowers contamination.

For B2B outers, add handling notes so films arrive at compactors clean and dry.

The takeaway for operators

End-of-life packaging for flexible multilayers improves when packs are designed for the real system they will meet, not an ideal one.

Push towards mono-material laminates; choose barriers, inks and adhesives that release or remain compatible; validate with sort-and-wash data; and, where needed, back credible alternative routes with stable offtake and honest labels.

The result is flexible packaging that protects products at low weight and returns material value at scale—fewer compromises, less leakage and claims that stand up to scrutiny.