The pilot in numbers.
Source: Repasys project data, Mechelen region pilot.
A shared tray for
competing chains.
Albert Heijn, ALDI, Carrefour, Colruyt, Delhaize and Lidl sell white mushrooms in a single reusable tray across the Mechelen region during a nine-month pilot. Consumers pay a €0.30 deposit and return the empty tray to any participating store. An industrial wash center cleans it, and the tray goes back into circulation.
Flanders' FOOD and VIL coordinate the project with support from VLAIO. It brings the full value chain together: retailers, producers, logistics partners, packaging manufacturers, Fost Plus, GS1 Belgilux, Comeos and Made. Repasys is the operational blueprint for how Belgian retail can respond to the PPWR, which restricts single-use plastic packaging on lightweight fresh produce from 2030.
- INDUSTRY
- Deposit-based reusable consumer packaging
- REGION
- Mechelen, Belgium
- PARTNERS
- Six retailers, producers, logistics, wash center
What makes REPASYS interesting for us is the combination of the project’s ambition and the simplicity of the system. A uniform tray, a clear deposit, return possible at any participating store: these are exactly the conditions that help remove the barriers to reuse.
Four layers, one record.
- 01
Identity
Every tray carries a unique QR code printed to the GS1 Digital Link standard. Rotion issues the codes and keeps the record behind each one, from the producer line to the return kiosk.
- 02
Scanning
Rotion specifies, deploys and supports scanning across the chain: stations at the producer and wash center, mobile and fixed scanning at logistics nodes and return kiosks in the stores. Each kiosk is built for a return in under 3 seconds.
- 03
Deposit clearing
A tray bought at Colruyt can come back at Lidl. Rotion acts as the neutral clearing layer. From the same scans, it records where each tray was sold and returned, and which retailer owes or is owed the deposit.
- 04
Partner views
Every partner sees return rates, dwell times, wash cycles, losses and deposit balances for its own part of the chain only. Anonymized totals go to the coordinators to evaluate the pilot.
Digital traceability gives reusable packaging a reliable and transparent lifecycle, with countless valuable insights. When we do this on the basis of open standards, a connected ecosystem emerges that speaks the same language, and we can work together towards efficient and scalable implementation.
Open standards make
the pool shareable.
Open GS1 standards make the pool interoperable across six retailers, several logistics partners and the wash center. Each partner keeps its own systems and sees the same tray history.
Return rates decide the unit economics of reuse. Fast kiosk returns, deposits cleared from the scans and one record per tray keep returns high and disputes low.
With a circular approach, we can use raw materials more intelligently and reduce waste and emissions.
