Technology · Invisible UV Tags
You can't see it. You can prove it.
Invisible on the shelf. Unmissable at the sorting line. A GS1 standard Invisible UV Tag printed onto your pack that tracks it to barcode level, all the way to recycling.
Stop guessing · start knowing
Every year, brands report recycling rates they cannot verify. Estimates, averages, guesswork. New legislation ends that. EPR fees are now modulated by evidence.
How it works
Barcode-level traceability, step by step.
Step 01
Printed
The tag prints into the artwork, invisible to the eye.
Step 02
Sold and used
The pack moves through the shop, the home, the bin.
Step 03
Binned
It enters the waste stream like any other pack.
Step 04
Detected
Detection units on the line read the tag at speed.
Step 05
Counted
The result is logged, pack by pack, site by site.
Watch · UV Tags on Packaging with PolytagOpens video player. Press Enter or Space to play.Tested in situ · fully operational MRFs
Detection rate in independent third-party testing at operational MRFs.
Of UK kerbside plastic visible to the detection network.
UK recycling sites with detection installed.
Stop guessing. Start knowing.
EPR, with evidence
Modulated fees reward brands that can prove recyclability. Show your working, pack by pack.
Recyclability claims, without the risk
Say your pack is recyclable because you can point to the detection data that proves it.
ESG reporting you can stand behind
Real, sortation-verified figures for your sustainability report. No modelling required.
Tomorrow's sortation, today
Detection infrastructure already installed at operational MRFs, ready as sortation technology evolves.
“Recyclable” is a design claim. “Recycled” is a fact. EPR fees already turn on the first. The pressure is building for the second. Polytag gives you the evidence before anyone asks for it.
The Ecotrace Programme
One tag is data. A network is proof.
Already on shelf with M&S, Ocado and Waitrose. Already being read in UK recycling centres, with partners including Biffa. Ecotrace is the network that turns invisible tags into hard evidence: built for the industry, by the industry.
14 detection sites · UK
No new kit. No new process. Just a smarter pack.
Rigid or flexible, the tag is printed into your existing artwork using standard printing methods. It goes on with the rest of the label, at low cost, with no change to your line.
The duality of the UV tag and QR code on our water bottles will enable Co-op to gain a greater understanding on a product’s journey in the recycling chain and provide valuable insight to shape guidance and measurement for future initiatives to encourage more people to recycle.
The other half of the pack
The Smart QR Code handles what customers see.
The UV Tag proves what happens after they're done. Together, one pack does both jobs.
