Real, separately governed packaging marks that are frequently mistaken for each other or for the plain recycling loop — a producer-financing scheme, legal disposal instructions, and independent certifications all look similar at a glance but mean very different things.
Three chasing arrows forming a triangular loop, used internationally to indicate recyclability or recycled content.
Two interlocking green arrows forming a circular motif, marking that a packaging producer has paid into a European packaging-recovery scheme.
A crossed-out wheeled bin symbol required on electrical and electronic products under EU law, instructing separate collection rather than general disposal.
A crossed-out wheeled bin symbol, sometimes marked with Pb, Cd or Hg, required on batteries under EU law to signal separate collection.
A stick-figure pictogram of a person putting litter into a bin, a UK-trademarked anti-littering mark that also appears informally on packaging worldwide.
A stylised sprout icon certifying that packaging meets the EN 13432 standard for industrial compostability.
The same three-arrow recycling loop with a numeric percentage inside or alongside it, denoting the proportion of recycled material actually contained in a product.
A checkmark-and-tree logo certifying that wood or paper-based packaging material comes from responsibly managed forestry.
Alphanumeric codes (such as PAP, FE, ALU, GL) identifying non-plastic packaging material composition under EU rules, parallel to the plastics resin codes.
A blue-circle ISO 7010 safety sign showing a person disposing of litter in a bin, instructing use of a litter bin in workplaces and public spaces.
An informal, uncertified leaf or sprout-style icon marketing a product as biodegradable — unlike the certified Seedling logo, with no fixed graphic or independent standard behind it.