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The Compost Council of Canada announced that the Canadian Product Marketing Association (CPMA) released guidance to Canada’s fresh produce industry to migrate to certified industrially compostable PLU (Product Look Up) stickers. “PLU stickers are integral in helping accurately and effectively identify the produce in question, providing better inventory control, and making scanning and pricing at checkout easier,” states CPMA’s Guidance Document To Canada’s Fresh Produce Industry. “The fresh produce sector acknowledges that the adverse impacts of PLU stickers on Canada’s industrial organics recycling industry should be mitigated. In response, CPMA and many of its members have been working closely with the Compost Council of Canada to determine how best to mitigate the adverse impacts of PLU stickers on Canada’s industrial organics recycling industry — and its customers — which includes Canada’s fresh produce sector. … To mitigate the impacts … the CPMA is encouraging Canada’s fresh produce sector to migrate to certified industrially compostable PLU stickers.”

Conventional PLU stickers are made of plastic and are a common contaminant at composting and anaerobic digestion facilities. The guidance document lays out the steps for CPMA members to take to effectively transition to certified industrial compostable PLU stickers, as well as explains the certification process in Canada (a BNQ standard). “This is terrific news for our industry,” notes Susan Antler, Executive Director of the Compost Council of Canada. “Congratulations to CPMA and its members as well as our industry and Council for the many years of work to deliver this guideline.”