While reusable transport packaging continues to make inroads at the B2B level, the consumer (B2C) reusable packaging space has become particularly newsworthy.
Case in point, a multi-retailer initiative to introduce reusable packaging for fresh produce has moved from concept to consumer-facing reality in Belgium, as a standardized reusable mushroom container pilot goes live in Mechelen.
The six-month trial, part of the REPASYS project, brings together Albert Heijn, ALDI Belgium, Carrefour Belgium, Colruyt Group, Delhaize Belgium, and Lidl Belgium & Luxembourg. The pilot marks one of the first large-scale, cross-retailer efforts in Europe to test reusable packaging for fresh produce in a real retail environment.
Henriane Gilliot, Environment & Energy Advisor at Comeos, described the moment as a milestone following years of development. Writing in a recent LinkedIn post, she reflected on the journey: “After three years of hard work, meetings, highs, lows… I had a little proud moment in the fruit and vegetable section in Mechelen with finally reusable packaging in my hands. We made it.”
The initiative replaces single-use mushroom trays with a standardized, reusable polypropylene container supported by a deposit system. Consumers pay a small deposit and can return the packaging at any participating retailer, regardless of where it was purchased. The system is supported by QR code tracking, enabling partners to monitor return rates, rotation cycles, and asset lifespan.
Reusable Packaging Standardization and Scale at the Core
A defining feature of the pilot is the decision to use a single, standardized container across competing retailers. Gilliot pointed to this as essential to making reuse viable at both the supply chain and consumer levels.
“A single package makes the system viable for the supply chain and simpler for the consumer,” she noted in her LinkedIn post, adding that scale is equally critical. “Without volumes, reuse is not economically viable.”
The collaboration among competitors, sometimes referred to in Dutch as “conculega’s,” is central to the project’s design. By aligning on packaging format and return infrastructure, the partners aim to avoid fragmented systems that have historically limited reuse initiatives.
“Reuse only works at scale, and you can only achieve scale if all supermarkets make the same effort,” Gilliot said in industry coverage of the project. “For the first time, all major Belgian supermarkets are taking a sustainable step toward reusable packaging together, not alongside each other, but with each other.”
Testing Consumer Behavior and Logistics
While the pilot incorporates digital tracking and standardized packaging, its success, like several previous reusable packaging pilots undertaken elsewhere, will depend heavily on consumer collaboration. Shoppers are required to return the containers after use, either through in-store machines or at checkout counters.
“Now it’s up to you,” Gilliot wrote in her LinkedIn post, emphasizing the role of consumers in determining the outcome of the trial. “After cooking your mushroom risotto, take the packaging back… the role of consumers will be decisive.”
At the same time, project partners are evaluating operational impacts across the supply chain, including reverse logistics, cleaning, handling costs, and integration with existing retail workflows. Industrial washing and redistribution systems are built into the model to enable multiple reuse cycles.
Aligned with PPWR Direction
The timing of the pilot aligns with the European Union’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which is expected to restrict the use of single-use plastic packaging for fruits and vegetables under 1.5 kilograms by 2030.
The Belgian retail sector has already made progress in recycling systems, but this initiative signals a shift toward reuse as a complementary strategy.
“Our sector is already a pioneer in recycling,” Gilliot noted in her LinkedIn post. “With the PPWR, reuse is becoming a new project, and retailers are enthusiastically continuing their efforts.”
The pilot also builds on earlier collaboration under the Green Deal Anders Verpakt initiative, where the concept was first developed through cross-industry networking and experimentation.
From Pilot to Potential Scale
The reusable mushroom tray project is being led by Flanders’ FOOD, VIL, and Pack4Food, with support from VLAIO. It brings together stakeholders across the value chain, including retailers, logistics providers, technology firms, and producers.
The outcome of the six-month trial will determine whether the model can be scaled more broadly, both within Belgium and potentially across other product categories.
If successful, the project could provide a template for standardized, cross-retailer reuse systems in fresh food, an area that has historically proven difficult due to food safety, logistics complexity, and consumer behavior challenges.
For now, the focus remains on execution. As Gilliot’s post suggests, the system is no longer theoretical. It is now in consumers’ hands and their shopping baskets.
Rick LeBlanc, EMBA, is the founder and editor of Reusable Packaging News (subscribe to the free newsletter) and editor of Western Pallet Magazine. A supply chain journalist with more than 30 years of experience, he specializes in pallets, reusable packaging, material handling and related operations. Rick is co-author of Pallets: A North American Perspective and Pallets & Progress: A Collected History of Pallets and Palletized Handling 1922–1945. He is also an advisory board member of the Virginia Tech Center for Packaging and Unit Load Design. Read Rick’s full bio.
