An unprecedented agreement was reached earlier this month in Canada between the fresh produce industry and composting organizations to accelerate certified, compostable PLU (Price Look Up) labels.

The first global meeting, involving IFPS, CPMA, the International Compost Alliance, and the Compost Council of Canada, agreed to develop a multi-phase framework to support this transition through the development and adoption of a global standard for compostable PLUs.

As reported in a joint release, the planned transition to certified compostable PLUs in the European Union (EU) by 2028 provides the necessary impulse to accelerate the global adoption of this collective goal.

Further meetings between the fresh produce and composting sectors are planned in the coming months to broaden the commitment and finalize the action plan by the end of 2024.

“Moving to a certified compostable format for PLUs is a priority for organics recycling facilities,” Susan Antler, executive director of Compost Council Canada and a member of the International Compost Alliance, stated in the press release.

“The current plasticized format is not compatible with the production of quality compost, nor can the stickers be easily removed during the organics recycling process, and can result in collected organics being sent to landfill or incinerated, contributing to environmental contamination and depleting an important resource for soil health,” she said.

CPMA president Ron Lemaire said the organization he leads is pleased to see the fresh produce and composting industries working together toward a global standard for PLU stickers.

“Given that PLUs are an integral part of fresh produce supply chains, this global dialogue needs to happen,” he said, adding that accelerating the adoption of compostable PLUs is a global priority, given the risk that compostable PLU requirements differ from country to country.

The meeting was attended not only by representatives of these organizations but also by composting industry players from Australia, the United States, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Italy, and the European Union.

The meeting provided a unique opportunity for the fresh produce and composting sectors to better understand each other's positions on PLU stickers.

The fresh produce sector presented the key role PLUs play in accurately and effectively identifying fresh produce for improved traceability, inventory control, and retail pricing, while the composting sector highlighted the impact of discarded PLU labels accompanying fresh produce waste.

Since most PLU labels are not compostable and are difficult to remove, they physically contaminate the organic recycling process and negatively impact the quality and value of the final compost.

The results of the meeting were left in draft form, they said in the release. The next steps include further engagement of industry representatives with their regional and global counterparts to disseminate the main conclusions of the meeting. This will include broader engagement with key markets in the European Union, where PLU requirements are evolving rapidly.

Industry stakeholders will develop and launch an action plan on the compostable PLU standard by the end of 2024, leading to actions to promote and accelerate the development and adoption of certified compostable PLUs from 2025.

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