New “Recycling Alliance for small Aluminium Packaging” launched in Europe
The Recycling Alliance for Small Aluminium Packaging has officially been launched to improve the recycling performance of such packaging across Europe. It was named “re-alu” and a dedicated branding has been developed for better recognition.
The Recycling Alliance for Small Aluminium Packaging has officially been launched to improve the recycling performance of such packaging across Europe. It was named “re-alu” and a dedicated branding has been developed for better recognition. The website “re-alu.org” is also online as well as it own LinkedIn presence.
Established under the umbrella of AMS Europe e.V., re-alu brings together companies from across the aluminium packaging value chain with a clear objective: to increase the recycling rate of small aluminium packaging in Europe to at least 55 % by 2035 aligned with the requirements of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
While aluminium beverage cans already achieve high recycling rates, small aluminium packaging – including coffee capsules, confectionery foils, cheese wraps, dairy lids and small containers – is still not consistently captured and sorted across Europe. Although modern sorting facilities are capable of recovering these items, collection and sorting systems are not yet sufficiently developed, leading to significant losses to residual waste and incineration.
The rollout of Deposit Return Schemes for beverage cans across Europe will significantly change aluminium flows in sorting facilities. As cans are increasingly collected separately, small aluminium packaging will represent a larger share of aluminium volumes in sorting plants. This shift offers a strategic opportunity to optimise existing infrastructure and improve capture rates for small formats at scale.
re-alu provides a structured platform for collaboration, innovation and joint action. The initiative will focus on improving sorting performance, supporting recyclability-by-design in line with PPWR criteria, and promoting fair and proportionate treatment of small aluminium packaging within Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes. A key activity in 2026 will be the update of a technical study on optimal sorting models for aluminium packaging, assessing economic feasibility and implementation pathways across different plant sizes and national contexts to demonstrate to stakeholders the return on investment of sorting small aluminium packaging.
With re-alu, industry stakeholders are moving from ambition to implementation. The platform is open to additional participants from across the value chain who wish to contribute to a coordinated European effort to ensure that small aluminium packaging is effectively recycled in practice and remains a sustainable solution within a circular economy.