Plastics and PVC: new accreditations for sustainability and the circular economy
Accredia operates within the PVC and plastics supply chains, supporting policies for a circular economy and environmental protection. Accredited certification ensures high-quality performance from companies and professionals
As a quintessentially democratic material—versatile, accessible to all, and low-cost—plastic represented a revolution in the 20th century. However, the massive production of packaging—a sector worth hundreds of billions of euros—and the boom in single-use items have turned plastic into one of the primary enemies of the environment today. Every year, millions of tons of plastic are released into the environment, driving up pollution levels and causing irreparable damage to our ecosystems.
The realization that traditional "linear" economies are economically and environmentally unsustainable in the long term has led to the development of a "circular economy" model, based on the recovery and recycling of materials. In 2015, the European Commission adopted an "EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy", which identified plastic as a priority; subsequently, the 2018 "European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy" set specific recycling targets for packaging to be met by 2030. Partly due to growing public awareness of these issues, waste management and sustainability have become watchwords for governments, businesses, and conscientious citizens alike.
Accredia—which works at both the national and international levels to pursue public-interest objectives through accreditation—now offers an expanded range of accreditation schemes in strategic sectors, including those concerning PVC and recycled materials.
The PVC industry—which has already demonstrated its voluntary commitment through the 2011 founding of VinylPlus, an initiative aimed at creating a long-term sustainability model—can now leverage accreditation from Accredia for the “VinylPlus Product Label”. This sustainability certification for PVC products is awarded based on compliance with specific criteria, including the responsible sourcing of PVC resin and additives, controlled life-cycle and recycling management, sustainable energy policies, and sound organizational and supply chain management. This accreditation enables companies to promote their products based on their superior performance, while demonstrating their contribution to sustainability and the circular economy—thereby enhancing their credibility with both institutions and the market.
In the sector of separate waste collection for plastic packaging, there is now an accreditation scheme for certifying operators who oversee the sorting process, in accordance with the UNI/PdR 46:2018 reference practice. Within the sorting centers (CSS) dedicated to separate waste collection, specialized personnel are tasked with selecting waste that meets specific criteria—established by Corepla (the National Consortium for the collection, recycling, and recovery of plastic packaging)—to ensure it can be sent for recycling. Certification issued by accredited bodies guarantees the competence, reliability, and high quality of the services provided, all of which are essential to the effective functioning of the entire system.
These two new accreditation schemes complement the existing “Plastica Seconda Vita” (“Second-Life Plastic”) certification, which applies to products derived from the processing of plastic waste recovered through separate collection or industrial scrap. This is the first Italian and European label dedicated to recycled plastic that certifies the percentage of recycled material contained in a product, in line with Green Public Procurement.