David Acott, Director of Operations at Interket UK, and Alice Rackley, CEO at Polytag, discuss why now is the time to rethink Fast-Moving Consumer Goods labels.
The Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector is facing a critical moment on its journey to becoming a more sustainable and circular industry.
Consumers expect more sustainable packaging, regulators are tightening rules, and retailers are grappling with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees.
Brands are under pressure to act, but solutions need to be practical, scalable, and measurable. In this landscape, packaging can be a crucial tool for ensuring compliance, managing costs, and fostering consumer trust.
When we first started developing UV-readable labels, it was first and foremost about providing a solution for retailers – one that would ultimately contribute to the wider picture of the circular economy.
With EPR set to impact the entire FMCG sector, brands need a solution that can be implemented immediately and scale with the regulatory landscape.
How UV-readable labels unlock value
This unique technology works by printing an invisible UV-readable code onto product labels, so that every item can be tracked for recyclability using detection units at material recycling facilities.
Retailers can then demonstrate exactly how much of their product packaging is being collected and processed, which can be used to evidence recycling performance and build customer trust.
That clarity is a true game-changer for brands and is beginning to transform the FMCG recycling landscape for good.
Making UV labels work at scale
Creating a label that works in the real world required a robust research and development programme. Our work involved iterating across multiple parameters, including ink density, colour, material, and sensor compatibility, to ensure reliable industrial-scale performance.
UV inks behave differently from solvent-based inks, and each type of packaging, whether that’s mono-labels, wraparounds, or different substrates, interacts uniquely with the detectors used in recycling facilities.
We ran migration tests, vibration trials, and sensor compatibility experiments, adjusting densities to achieve a solution that works consistently and was verified for safety and suitability across the supply chain.
Colour and substrate selection were key challenges. The reflectivity of gold inks or darker pigments can confuse the sensors, so each shade required precise calibration. Material choice was equally critical.
We stuck with Interket UK’s recyclable material converted into labels because they passed migration tests and were already market-validated. Introducing a new substrate would have required restarting the entire testing process, so we focused on consistency while optimising for UV readability.
What made this solution possible was the close collaboration between our two brands. By combining Interket UK’s expertise in label substrates and printing with Polytag’s understanding of UV detection technology and sensor integration, we were able to test, iterate, and refine solutions under real operational conditions.
Within the process, subtle challenges were revealed – from plate design and sequential coding to variations in printing line performance – that could only be resolved through joint problem-solving.
This iterative approach ensured that when the label went live, it was robust, reliable, and scalable across different product lines. It also created a blueprint for future deployments, reducing risk and accelerating adoption across the FMCG sector.
Scaling across FMCG
The first deployments were for the likes of Ocado and M&S in high-volume dairy, chosen for the rapid feedback loop and operational intensity. However, the potential of the solution is not limited to milk.
There is huge potential for UV-readable labels to be applied across bottles, jars, and even carton packaging, opening opportunities across the FMCG spectrum.
Once installed, retailers are future-proofed – they can record recycled materials and gather evidence to potentially reduce EPR fees as regulations move to make data and evidence a key part of EPR reporting.
Any initial cost of changing the label could ultimately be offset by the long-term savings on fees.
Consumer engagement and brand value
While potential cost reduction and compliance are the immediate drivers for brands, UV-readable labels also offer a powerful tool for engaging consumers.
The labels enable brands to tell a clear sustainability story: every product can be traced through the recycling system, and consumers can trust that their purchase contributes to a circular economy.
This transparency builds loyalty and reinforces brand positioning at a time when sustainability is central to purchasing decisions.
The bottom line
UV-readable labels are a practical solution available to retailers, already deployed in the market and operating at scale, delivering something the FMCG sector has long lacked: a direct link between recyclability, verified data, and financial outcomes.
For the first time, brands and retailers can evidence what is actually being recycled and use that data to influence and potentially reduce EPR exposure.
The point isn’t to over-engineer packaging, but to make labels work harder behind the scenes, embedded into the system and robust enough to scale.
Those who act now will be better prepared, commercially and operationally, than those forced to react later. In that sense, UV-readable labels are not just enabling a circular economy, but redefining how value is created from it.