HG4PPFlex: Holy Grail 4 Polypropylene Flexibles

With the support of:

HG4PPflex investigates how digital watermarks, smart sorting and advanced mechanical recycling can contribute to the circularity of flexible PP packaging for the Belgian market. The project assesses the technical, economic and environmental feasibility and supports the development of sufficient recycled polypropylene for contact-sensitive applications.

Why this project?

From 2030 onwards, stricter European requirements for recycled content in plastic packaging will apply. For polypropylene (PP), and especially for flexible PP packaging in contact-sensitive applications, there is currently not enough high-quality recyclate available. Conventional sorting and recycling processes are not always sufficient to achieve the required quality, safety and volumes. HG4PPflex therefore investigates how digital watermarks, smart sorting and advanced mechanical recycling can help close the loop for flexible PP packaging. The project focuses on the Belgian market and maps the technical, economic and environmental conditions needed to make these solutions practically applicable.

Research approach and expected results

HG4PPflex is a COOCK+ project that models and assesses the performance of digital watermark-enabled sorting and advanced recycling processes for flexible PP packaging. Based on demonstration trials, the project will calculate recycling yields, recyclate quality, final composition and potential contributions to recycled content targets. The recyclates will also be assessed against food safety requirements, including EFSA-related criteria. In addition, the project includes carbon footprint calculations, techno-economic assessments and a mapping of relevant value chains and technology compatibility in Flanders. This will provide companies with concrete insights into the feasibility, conditions and implementation potential of circular solutions for flexible PP packaging.

Target group

The results are relevant for companies and organisations across the full value chain of flexible PP packaging: brand owners, food companies, packaging producers, sorting companies, recyclers, technology providers, retailers, sector organisations and policy or support organisations working on circular packaging.

Project partners

Flanders’ FOOD en Catalisti ondersteunen het project binnen het COOCK+-kader. De coördinatie gebeurt door Catalisti. Het onderzoek wordt uitgevoerd door UGent, onderzoeksgroep LCPE, Pack4Food, Fost Plus en CAPTURE.

Catalisti, led by Martijn Roosen (mroosen@catalisti.be)
Ghent University, research group LCPE (Laboratory of Circular Process Engineering), led by professor Steven De Meester (steven.demeester@ugent.be)
Pack4Food, led by Peter Ragaert (peter.ragaert@pack4food.be)
Fost Plus, led by Philippe Gendebein (philippe.gendebien@fostplus.be)
CAPTURE, led by Stijn Vandenbroucke (stijn.vandenbroucke@ugent.be)

Keen to join?

HG4PPFlex start op 01/09/2026 en loopt tot 31/08/2028. Bedrijven met interesse in geavanceerde sortering, recyclage en toepassing van flexibele PP-verpakkingen kunnen deelnemen via de begeleidingsgroep. Deelname is relevant voor organisaties die de projectresultaten willen opvolgen, input willen geven vanuit de praktijk en de toepasbaarheid voor hun eigen activiteiten willen verkennen.