By Maelenn Ravard, Regulatory and Sustainability Manager at TotalEnergies Corbion
Designing a product with its end of life in mind is essential for achieving a truly circular economy. At TotalEnergies Corbion, we believe that compostable plastics have an important role to play—especially when composting is the most suitable end-of-life option, such as in cases where packaging is contaminated with food waste.
Through our membership in the Compostable by Design Platform, TotalEnergies Corbion has contributed to the development of new guidelines for the design of compostable items.
These guidelines are intended to help companies decide whether designing for compostability makes sense for their product. A decision tree guides users step by step through key considerations—such as food contamination, potential organic bin contamination, and local collection systems—before recommending whether mechanical recycling or composting is the most appropriate route.
In addition to the decision tool, the document includes best practices, examples of suitable applications, and labeling recommendations to support effective communication with consumers and waste managers.
The creation of these guidelines is especially timely in today’s legislative context. The EU Waste Framework Directive requires all member states to implement separate collection for organic waste, while the forthcoming Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) mandates the use of compostable packaging in certain applications.
A key strength of the initiative lies in its cross-value-chain collaboration—bringing together waste management organisations, certification bodies, raw material producers, converters, and other stakeholders.
With this collective effort, the industry aims to support brand owners in responsible product design and to demonstrate to policymakers that compostable materials have a clear, practical, and valuable role in Europe’s circular economy.