Tetra Pak has announced a significant investment aimed at enhancing food and drink packaging sorting capabilities in the UK. This includes the introduction of AI-powered optical sorting technology, marking its debut in the UK market.
Tetra Pak has financed the development and installation of advanced AI-powered optical sorting technology at Cumbria Waste Management’s materials recycling facility (MRF) in Carlisle, in partnership with British technology start-up Recycleye. The Recycleye QuantiSort® system employs AI and cameras to accurately detect beverage cartons within mixed material waste streams. Pneumatic valves are then utilized to eject these cartons for recycling. This innovative system, capable of being trained more effectively than traditional sorting methods, achieves over 98% purity in carton output.
This upgrade empowers Cumbria Waste Management to enhance the sorting of food and drink packaging for recycling. The facility services a vast region across North West England, including Cumberland Council, Westmorland & Furness Council, and several areas of Scotland.
In addition, two other UK MRFs have received funding to upgrade their food and drink packaging sorting capabilities, raising Tetra Pak’s total investment in UK sorting infrastructure to £1.4 million by 2025. Previously, in May, it was announced that J&B Recycling in Hartlepool was the first site to receive upgrades through the addition of two robotic sorting arms—another innovation from Recycleye. A third and final site will be confirmed later this year.
This investment highlights Tetra Pak’s long-standing commitment to collaborating with legislators and local authorities to enhance the collection, sorting, and recycling of food and drink packaging in the UK.
Moreover, this initiative forms part of Tetra Pak’s broader annual commitment of over £34 million to expanding global food and drink packaging collection, sorting, and recycling infrastructure, in partnership with stakeholders throughout the value chain. Of this commitment, £2.4 million has been specifically allocated to UK infrastructure aimed at sorting food and drink packaging.
This investment precedes the implementation of the government’s Simpler Recycling policy for households, set to launch in March 2026. Tetra Pak has actively supported the government in developing this policy, which will enable all households in England to recycle cartons from kerbside. Additionally, new regulations for businesses were established in March requiring premises to recycle specific materials in segregated bins. This policy is anticipated to greatly increase the collection of food and drink packaging at kerbside, making effective sorting infrastructure even more essential.
Awantika Chadha, Sustainability Manager, Tetra Pak UK, stated: “This announcement of another upgrade to a UK MRF demonstrates our commitment to improving the UK’s recycling infrastructure and transforming the UK’s circular economy. We are particularly pleased to be helping to implement AI-powered optical sorter technology in the UK for the first time. We hope this collaboration with Cumbria Waste Management and Recycleye will act as a blueprint for the upgrade of food and drink packaging sorting capabilities across the UK.”
Victor Dewulf, Co-founder and CEO of Recycleye, remarked: “We are proud to collaborate with Tetra Pak and Cumbria Waste to deliver Recycleye QuantiSort® for bulk recovery of food and drink packaging, utilizing cutting-edge AI optical sorter innovation. This project showcases the potential of AI to effectively detect and recover items such as food and drink cartons, providing MRFs with adaptable technology to meet changing material streams.”
Andy Chant, CEO of Cumbria Waste Group, said: “We are delighted to have fitted the Recycleye kit to our container processing line at Carlisle. We handle materials from various regions across the North of England and Scotland. Although our Council customers are not yet actively targeting Tetra Pak, it is impressive how much we are already recovering with the system seamlessly integrating with the rest of our plant.”
Mandy Kelly, Chief Executive of ACE UK, commented: “As we approach the rollout of Simpler Recycling—which will require all councils in England to collect cartons at kerbside—we’re proud to support this landmark investment in advanced sorting technology. The installation at Cumbria Waste represents another milestone in a broader program of upgrades at key MRFs across the UK. This will significantly enhance the volume of food and drink packaging being sorted and sent for reprocessing. At ACE UK, we remain committed to collaborating with both industry and local authorities to boost carton recycling success.”
For more information about Tetra Pak, please visit www.tetrapak.com.
To learn more, visit www.recycleye.com.
Find out more at www.cumbriawaste.co.uk.