RPET

Also known as Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate (rPET)

PET is the chemical substance Polyethylene terephthalate, derived from fossil fuels, can never ever biodegrade regardless of time, extremely eco unfriendly and is also known as Polyester. Prefixing with an R in front means the polyester contains recycled content and is supposed to be “green”.

There are now many companies around the world that produce virgin grade PET products for the sole purpose of recycling them immediately into so-called RPET. This is green-washing at its worst and amounts to consumer fraud.

As a result of the huge demand, manufacturer prices on certified RPET are considerably higher than that of virgin polyester. If a company claims a product is made from 100% RPET without certification, but it’s not much more expensive than a virgin polyester bag, then common-sense suggests that the bag probably isn’t made from RPET. Do also note that it is very difficult to perform a test to tell the difference between genuine RPET and cheap virgin polyester.