PMD — plastic, cans & drink cartons

Bin: Orange container

Becomes regranulate: pens, binders and new packaging.

PMD stands for Plastic packaging, Metal packaging and Drink cartons. It is about packaging — not about objects made of plastic or metal. Empty is enough: rinsing is not needed, emptying is.

This belongs in it

Plastic bottles, flacons and caps
Plastic trays, pouches and film
Crisp bags and sweet wrappers
Drink cans, tins and aluminium trays
Drink cartons for juice and dairy
Plastic sauce and yoghurt pots

This does not belong in it

Coffee cups (separate stream)
Polystyrene / EPS (separate stream)
Plastic objects such as toys, pens and folders
Packaging still full of food
Batteries, pressurised spray cans and paint tins

What happens to it?

1. Collection on site
The PMD container or collection bag is picked up on fixed days.
2. Sorting plant
A sorting line separates the stream mechanically: steel with magnets, aluminium with eddy currents, plastics by type with infrared (PET, PE, PP).
3. Washing and grinding
Each clean fraction is washed, ground and melted into regranulate — pellets that serve as new raw material.
4. New products
That regranulate becomes new packaging and office supplies.

Where is it processed?

Sorted in a specialised plastics sorting plant; metals go to the smelter, drink cartons to a paper mill that recovers the fibre.

This is what it becomes

Pens and calculators from recycled plastic
Ring binders and folders
Waste separation bins
New bottles, film and packaging

Good to know

400 literfrom this incidental volume, plastic film must be kept separateCMP, tabel 2

1000 literthe same duty applies to EPS (polystyrene) packagingCMP, tabel 2

altijdmetals must be kept separate regardless of quantityCMP, tabel 1

Rules and legislation

The Circular Materials Plan requires organisations to keep plastic film separate from 400 litres when it arises incidentally; above 660 litres of business waste per week this applies weekly. For EPS packaging the threshold is 1,000 litres. For other plastics the tables set no threshold (yet) — separating is allowed and pays off, but is not mandatory.

Sources

The figures and rules on this page were checked against the following sources.

Gescheiden houden van bedrijfsafval en gevaarlijk afvalRijkswaterstaat — Circulair Materialenplan
Veelgestelde vragen — bedrijfsafval scheidenCirculair Materialenplan
Circulair Materialenplan treedt 30 december 2025 in werkingInformatiepunt Leefomgeving

Checked on 18 August 2026

Other waste streams

Paper & cardboard Blue container Confidential paper Locked security container Coffee cups Cup collection point (if available) Coffee grounds Bucket next to the coffee machine Organic waste & swill Green container Glass Yellow glass container Frying fat & cooking oil Yellow drum with screw cap Metal Metal container or skip

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