Integrating RFID technology with packaging could also be used to incentivise the consumer at home : a smart recycling bin could count the number of items that are placed into it and give the consumer credits for how much is collected . Promoting positive behaviour rather than the negative “ Pay to Throw ” schemes which propose to charge for the amount of unsegregated waste . When on the go , deposit return schemes could be implemented curb-side that could pre-sort the items based on their unique identifier , reducing the risk of cross contamination of plastics .
For supply and retail chains , early studies carried out by Avery Dennison have shown up to a 20 % reduction in waste at a UK retailer using RFID , by ensuring that short sell-by dates can be easily and quickly identified , and the products brought forward and sold well within those dates . If this improvement could be achieved across meat , fish and dairy in just Europe and North America , it could save 60,000 tonnes of plastic packaging and 3mn tonnes of food per year .
There is also the possibility that RFID could be used on black plastic food trays , commonly used for ready meals , which cannot be separated using the near infrared ( NIR ) sorting technique employed in municipal waste recycling centres today . If it could be used to identify this valuable source of plastic , a million tonnes of plastic could be saved from landfill per year in the UK alone .
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