Aldi Adds How2Recycle Label to All Exclusive Brand Products

Grocery retailer Aldi will use the How2Recycle label across all exclusive brand products in the next two years. The How2Recycle label will empower Aldi shoppers to recycle better by making it easy to decipher which package can be recycled, and if they need to take any special steps to prepare the package for recycling, the company says.

Aldi says that its commitment to using the labels is one part of its broader goal to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills by recycling equipment batteries and cardboard, paper, plastic film and foil from all stores and warehouses.

Because most of its products — more than 90% — are Aldi-exclusive brands, the company has a greater influence over its own supply chain, including how products are sourced, produced and delivered to its stores, the company says.

The How2Recycle label is the only US-based recycling label that is standardized across all packaging types and is the only label to offer comprehensive instructions on packaging recyclability in an easy to understand format, according to the company. Thousands of name brand products already use the label and it can be found in retailers in hundreds of stores across the country.

Lego Group and Colgate Palmolive also recently agreed to use How2Recycle labels.

The Sustainable Packaging Coalition says it created the label for a variety of reasons: valuable recyclables are still ending up in landfill, recycling labeling is not yet standardized, and recycling information can be hard to understand. Not only is the How2Recycle label designed to alleviate these issues, but it is also designed to comply with the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides that regulate environmental marketing claims. As a project of SPC, How2Recycle also has its eyes on the future of innovation in packaging design for recyclability and recycling economics, according to the organization.