What does the recycling code on this pack mean?

The number in the triangle, or the letters under it, names the material. It does not promise that your collection takes it.

Plastics · 7

Resin codes 1 to 7: the number in the triangle names the plastic. 1 to 6 are the same in the EU decision and the US standard; 7 is ASTM's 'other'.

1 PETPolyethylene terephthalate 2 HDPEHigh-density polyethylene 3 PVCPolyvinyl chloride 4 LDPELow-density polyethylene 5 PPPolypropylene 6 PSPolystyrene 7 OtherOther plastics, or a mix

Paper and card · 3

PAP 20 to 22 from Annex II of Commission Decision 97/129/EC. 23 to 39 are left unassigned.

PAP 20Corrugated fibreboard PAP 21Non-corrugated fibreboard PAP 22Paper

Metal · 2

FE 40 and ALU 41 from Annex III of the decision. 42 to 49 are left unassigned.

FE 40Steel ALU 41Aluminium

Glass · 3

GL 70, 71 and 72 from Annex VI of the decision: the colour of the glass. 73 to 79 are left unassigned.

GL 70Colourless glass GL 71Green glass GL 72Brown glass

Wood and cork · 2

FOR 50 and 51 from Annex IV of the decision. 52 to 59 are left unassigned.

FOR 50Wood FOR 51Cork

Textile · 2

TEX 60 and 61 from Annex V of the decision. 62 to 69 are left unassigned.

TEX 60Cotton TEX 61Jute

Composites · 3

Annex VII of the decision: packs made of materials that 'cannot be separated by hand'. They are marked C/ plus the main material, so a paper-based composite reads C/PAP.

C/PAP 81Paper and board/plastic C/PAP 82Paper and board/aluminium C/PAP 84Paper and board/plastic/aluminium

Also numbered in Annex VII, with no page here yet: 80 Paper and fibreboard/miscellaneous metals · 83 Paper and fibreboard/tinplate · 85 Paper and fibreboard/plastic/aluminium/tinplate · 90 Plastic/aluminium · 91 Plastic/tinplate · 92 Plastic/miscellaneous metals · 95 Glass/plastic · 96 Glass/aluminium · 97 Glass/tinplate · 98 Glass/miscellaneous metals.

Claims · 2

The Mobius loop is a maker's own statement: alone it claims 'recyclable'; with a percentage it claims recycled content. It names no material.

Mobius loopRecyclable claim Mobius loop with a percentageRecycled-content claim

How the codes work

The number is the material. The EU numbering comes from Commission Decision 97/129/EC of 28 January 1997: 1 to 19 for plastics, 20 to 39 paper and board, 40 to 49 metals, 50 to 59 wood, 60 to 69 textiles, 70 to 79 glass and 80 to 99 composites. Only some numbers in each block are assigned; the rest are blank.
The letters are the same thing in short. The decision says only capital letters are to be used: PET, PAP, FE, ALU, FOR, TEX, GL. A composite takes C/ plus its main material, so a drinks carton reads C/PAP 84.
Plastics 1 to 6 match the US codes. The US resin identification code, begun by the plastics industry in 1988 and now ASTM D7611, uses the same six numbers. Its 7 means “other”; the EU decision leaves 7 blank. Since 2013 ASTM has specified a plain solid triangle instead of chasing arrows, because the arrows were being read as a recycling promise.
The code is voluntary and it is not a verdict. Article 3 of the decision made the system voluntary. The UK copy of the decision was revoked on 31 December 2020, but the same codes are still printed on packs sold there. Neither the EU codes nor the US resin codes say whether any collection accepts the item.
A loop of arrows with nothing inside is a claim, not a code: the Mobius loop claims the pack is recyclable, and the loop with a percentage claims recycled content.

Whether this goes in your recycling depends on your local collection; check your council or municipality's sorting guide.

Labels we describe but do not draw

These are registered marks owned by their schemes, so there is no drawing of them here. What each one tells you:

The Green Dot: Two interlocking arrows in a circle. It means the producer has paid a fee to a national packaging recovery scheme for that pack; it does not mean the pack is recyclable. PRO Europe, which licenses it, calls it 'a financing symbol for producer responsibility (EPR) - not an eco-label'. Source: PRO Europe: The Green Dot trademark, checked 2026-09-23; Worcestershire County Council: Recycling symbols explained, checked 2026-09-23.
Triman: France's sorting logo, a figure with arrows. The French ministry calls it the reference logo showing that a product must be sorted, and it is followed by the Info-tri panel that says where each part goes (sorting bin, waste centre, shop or donation). It tells you to sort, not that the pack is made of any particular material. Source: French Ministry for the Ecological Transition: Avec l'Info-tri, trier devient plus simple, checked 2026-09-23.
OPRL (On-Pack Recycling Label): The UK label that says 'Recycle' or 'Don't Recycle' in words. OPRL gives 'Recycle' when 75% or more of UK local authorities collect that packaging and it is then sorted and sold as recyclate, and 'Don't Recycle' when fewer than 50% collect it; it covers the UK only. Source: OPRL: How the scheme works, checked 2026-09-23; Worcestershire County Council: Recycling symbols explained, checked 2026-09-23.
How2Recycle: The US and Canadian label that names each part of a pack and gives a verdict per part: Widely Recyclable (at least 60% of Americans and 50% of Canadians can recycle it at the kerb or a drop-off), Check Locally, Store Drop-off (US film only) or Not Yet Recyclable. Its US labels follow the FTC Green Guides. Source: How2Recycle: About the How2Recycle label, checked 2026-09-23.

Sources

Commission Decision 97/129/EC of 28 January 1997 establishing the identification system for packaging materials (OJ L 50, 20.2.1997), as adopted — UK National Archives copy — checked 2026-09-23
ASTM D7611/D7611M-26, Standard Practice for Coding Plastic Manufactured Articles for Resin Identification — catalogue page (scope, significance and use) — checked 2026-09-23
ASTM Standardization News, 2013: Modernizing the Resin Identification Code (the solid-triangle revision, and what each resin is used for) — checked 2026-09-23
16 CFR 260.12 Recyclable claims (US FTC Green Guides), eCFR — checked 2026-09-23
US EPA: How Do I Recycle Common Recyclables — checked 2026-09-23
Worcestershire County Council: Recycling symbols explained — checked 2026-09-23
Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, Article 11 (separate collection) — UK National Archives copy — checked 2026-09-23
16 CFR 260.13 Recycled content claims (US FTC Green Guides), eCFR — checked 2026-09-23
Decision 97/129/EC on legislation.gov.uk: revoked in the UK on 31.12.2020 by S.I. 2019/620 — checked 2026-09-23

The decision is quoted from the Official Journal text as adopted (the UK National Archives copy; EUR-Lex did not answer a plain request from this host). ASTM D7611 and ISO 14021 are sold by their publishers and are not quoted beyond their public catalogue text.