Reuse is essential to solve both the plastic and climate crises.

PR3 and its global partners are advancing Reuse Standards to support and empower the move away from single-use packaging.

News and Upcoming Events

PR3 and ECOS Offer Recommendations on Effective References to Standards in The Global Plastics Treaty

  • Many places in the proposed text of the revised zero draft call for developing global voluntary standards. PR3 and ECOS agree standards are necessary to align and scale the technologies and systems that we need to stem plastic pollution and better manage our limited resources. However, development of any standards created to support the treaty’s implementation must include equitable participation from a broad spectrum of impacted communities and sectors. Read our recommendation for how to achieve effective reference to standards in the Global Plastics Treaty.

PR3’s Recommendations for the Global Plastics Treaty Ahead at INC-4

  • Reuse must be a central part of the Global Plastics Treaty.

    Recycling, refill, and reuse are often confused, leading to a prolonged reliance on systems damaging to human health and the environment. PR3 recommends that the Global Plastics Treaty adhere to the waste management hierarchy and prioritize the more favored options of reduction and reuse. This includes setting reuse targets and requiring standardized product design to reduce plastic demand and increase reusability. Standardized design criteria across the reuse system, including reuse labeling, packaging design, washing & sanitization, collection systems, and methodology for tracking environmental and social benefits, supports interoperability between reuse systems. Global standards for reusable packaging systems will enable systems to scale, resulting in significant decreases in system costs, climate emissions, and plastic pollution.

Consumer

  • Center for Environmental Health

  • Consumer Reports

  • Safer States

Environmental and Social Justice

  • Break Free From Plastic

  • DietPlastik Indonesia

  • Eunomia Research & Consulting

  • Food Packaging Forum Foundation

  • Greenpeace East Asia

  • National Resources Defense Council

  • Ocean Plastics Leadership Network (OPLN)

  • Oceana

  • Perpetual

  • Plastic Free Future

  • Story of Stuff

  • Surfrider

  • The Descendants Project

  • Upstream

  • Vessel Works

  • Zero Waste Europe

  • Zero Waste Hawai'i Island

  • Zero Waste Malaysia

Government

  • City of Seattle, Seattle Public Utilities

  • San Francisco Environment Department

  • USDA Foreign Agricultural Service

Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel Members

Updated March 2024

Business

  • Ahold Delhaize

  • Algramo

  • American Beverage Association

  • Anchor Packaging

  • Arrrise

  • Australian Packaging Covenant Organization

  • Bopaq

  • Bold Reuse

  • Busch Systems

  • Cambium

  • Circulr

  • Closed Loop Partners

  • Dispatch Goods

  • ECHO Systems

  • Enviu

  • Friendlier

  • Hello!BulkMarkets

  • Huskee

  • LimeLoop

  • Loop/TerraCycle

  • Mars

  • Muuse

  • Nestle

  • New European Reuse Alliance

  • Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative

  • Orora

  • Ozarka B.V.

  • PAC Global

  • r.World

  • Re Company

  • Re:Dish

  • Reusables.com

  • Revino

  • Revolusation Inc.

  • Searious Business

  • ShareWares

  • Siklus

  • SUPZero

  • Target Corporation

  • The Clorox Company

  • Tomra

  • Unilever

  • Unpackaged Systems Ltd.

  • U.S Plastics Pact

  • WSP USA

Testing and Standards

  • China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation

  • CSA Group

  • ECOS

  • GS1

  • KIDV

  • Packwise

  • PR3/RESOLVE

  • Reverse Logistics Association

Workers

  • Eureka Recycling & AMBR (the Alliance of Mission-Based Recyclers)

  • GAIA

  • Mother Earth Foundation

reuse Sanitizing Facility

The Reuse Opportunity and the Global Plastic Treaty.

What is reuse & returnable packaging?

Imagine you buy a coffee or snack in durable packaging and when finished, you place the empty container into a reuse bin on the street, the office, or at home. The container gets picked up, washed, and redistributed. This cycle is repeated dozens or hundreds of times - all enabled by smart technologies that move the packaging through washing and logistics. The system is efficient, convenient, and affordable, and works for most packaged goods. It also reduces plastic packaging production by 90% and saves up to 80% of carbon emissions compared to single-use packaging. This is the kind of reuse system the Global Plastic Treaty can enable and help scale around the world.

The stakeholders in the reuse ecosystem

  • Integrate reuse systems into climate and waste strategies as well as local and national economic development.

  • Promote policy and reuse systems that adhere to standards in order to ensure environmental performance.

  • Collaborate with other stakeholders on the design of reuse systems and infrastructure to unlock investment and scale.

  • Play a lead role in the design and implementation of the reuse economy.

Announcements and Recent Activities

APRIL 23-29, 2024

Read PR3’s recommendations for the Global Plastics Treaty

APRIL 19, 2024

New Workgroup: The PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel launched its fourth workgroup, which will focus on revising PR3’s Digital standard (RES-004). RESOLVE’s Project Initiation Notification was published in ANSI’s Standards Action Vol. 55, No. 16.

MARCH 26, 2024

The PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel initiated a ballot on PR3’s Washing, Sanitization and Foodware Handling standard (RES-002).

MARCH 21, 2024

Panel Meeting: The next meeting of the PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel will be on April 2, 2024, and April 3, 2024. If you are interested in participating in the panel, please contact the PR3 team.  

JANUARY 19, 2024

Panel Meeting: The next meeting of the PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel will be on January 30, 2024, and January 31, 2024. If you are interested in participating in the panel, please contact the PR3 team.  

NOVEMBER 15, 2023
INC-3 | Nairobi, Kenya

On behalf of PR3 The Global Alliance to Advance Reuse, Rémi Parmentier, submitted an intervention to the Global Plastics Treaty.

“I commend the delegations who have emphasized the need to agree to a definition of the word reuse. Such a definition must be clear and strict, in line with the Waste Management Strategy which – as several delegations have reminded – places prevention and minimization as the preferred option.

Reuse and recycling are two different things – Recycling has a role for end of life if products are reused dozens of times. But otherwise, it encourages single-use packaging which only contributes to plastic proliferation -- Reuse is the only way forward. Recycling has almost no climate benefits, while reuse drastically reduces emissions.

Yesterday, the representative of ISO, the International Organization for Standardization, stated the willingness of the organization to participate in intersessional work on definitions, including the definition of reuse.

I would like to second ISO’s proposal of intersessional work on definitions, and express PR3’s own willingness to participate in INC’s definition of reuse standards and criteria.

I invite you to go to www.pr3standards.org to learn about PR3’s Reuse Standards to support and empower the move away from single-use packaging.”

NOVEMBER 13-19, 2023

Read PR3’s recommendations for the Global Plastics Treaty

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

New Workgroup: The PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel launched its third workgroup, which will focus on revising PR3’s Labeling standard (RES-003). RESOLVE’s Project Initiation Notification was published in ANSI’s Standards Action Vol. 54, No. 38.

AUGUST 7, 2023

Panel Meeting: The next meeting of the PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel will be on September 6, 2023 and September 7, 2023. If you are interested in participating in the panel, please contact the PR3 team.  

AUGUST 4, 2023

New Workgroup: The PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel launched its second workgroup, which will focus on revising PR3’s Washing, Sanitization and Foodware Handling standard (RES-002). RESOLVE’s Project Initiation Notification was published in ANSI's Standards Action Vol. 54, No. 31. 

 

APRIL 26, 2023

New Workgroup: The PR3 Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel launched its first workgroup, which will focus on revising PR3’s Containers standard (RES-001). RESOLVE’s Project Initiation Notification was published in ANSI's Standards Action Vol. 54, No. 19. 

 

APRIL 13, 2023

ANSI Accreditation: RESOLVE’s accreditation under its proposed operating procedures for documenting consensus on RESOLVE-sponsored American National Standards was approved by the American National Standards Institute.

 

MARCH 21-23, 2023

Kick-off: RESOLVE officially launched its Reusable Packaging System Standards Panel. This panel will carry forward the work of evolving PR3’s reuse standards and pursue accreditation through the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the International Organization on Standardization (ISO). The panel already includes over 60 organizations, including multinational FMCGs, brands, and retailers, over a dozen reuse enterprises, community groups and environmental justice advocates, city and national government officials, human health and toxics experts, and others. Over the coming years, this diverse group of stakeholders will work to align around key parameters for returnable packaging systems, creating the foundation for systems that are affordable for businesses and consumers, equitable and accessible, safe, and better for the planet than single-use. PR3 continues to accept panel applications. Representatives from all impacted sectors are encouraged to participate.