Since 2022, the collaboration has focused on optimizing and adapting packaging and significantly increasing the use of recycled material.
- Both companies are working so that, from 2027 onwards, all Grupo Fertiberia tenders will require a minimum of 50% recycled content in all packaging.
Madrid, 11 February 2026. The alliance between Grupo Fertiberia, a European leader in high-tech and low-carbon of crop nutrition and industrial solutions, and Grupo Armando Álvarez, a benchmark company in the transformation of plastics for industrial and agricultural packaging, is redefining industry standards in sustainable packaging by anticipating future European regulations on the use of recycled materials in packaging.
Since 2022, the collaboration has been built around a dual strategy: on the one hand, reducing the base weight and overall mass of packaging to market standards by leveraging the latest available technologies; and on the other, significantly increasing the use of recycled materials in packaging processes. As a result of this joint effort, innovative materials have been certified and are already being incorporated into Grupo Fertiberia’s packaging.
According to Andrea Sánchez, Sustainability and QHSE Director at Grupo Fertiberia, “this alliance represents a decisive step towards a future in which environmental responsibility and innovation go hand in hand. That is why we are joining market leaders with the aim of ensuring that our entire group benefits from this initiative—first in Spain and Portugal, and in the short term, in France and the Netherlands.”
“At Grupo Armando Álvarez, sustainability is a strategic pillar of our business model. Our collaboration with Grupo Fertiberia demonstrates how innovation and joint efforts make it possible to anticipate regulatory requirements, delivering packaging solutions with recycled content that are efficient, safe, and aligned with Fertiberia’s circularity and decarbonization objectives,” says Andrés García de Tuñón, Head of Corporate Sustainability at Grupo Armando Álvarez.
The European Union’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation sets 2030 as the deadline for achieving at least 35% recycled content in packaging. Some of the packaging produced as a result of this alliance—such as sacks made from recycled plastics—already exceeds this future regulatory requirement.
In addition, Grupo Fertiberia has taken further steps to incorporate recycled materials into its packaging while ensuring full recyclability at all times. Traditionally, packaging made from 100% virgin material was already 100% recyclable. What this new collaboration and the Group’s current strategy enable is the incorporation of certified, traceable recycled material—without compromising recyclability—and in proportions exceeding those required by current regulations.
Within this framework, 50% post-consumer recycled (PCR) polyethylene has been incorporated into all polyethylene (PE) sacks; 30% post-industrial recycled (PIR) material is used in big bags; PP woven sacks are expected to include 30% recycled content in 2026 and up to 50% in 2027–2028 (PIR); and jerricans and IBC containers are transitioning towards recycled content levels of 50% and 30% PCR polyethylene, respectively. In addition, the use of 100% recycled PET (rPET) big bags has been approved at plants in Portugal. All of these measures ensure that all Grupo Fertiberia packaging remains 100% recyclable, while significantly reducing its environmental footprint and advancing toward more ambitious circular economy models.
The collaboration with Grupo Armando Álvarez aims to ensure that, from 2027 onwards, all Grupo Fertiberia tenders require a minimum of 50% recycled content in all packaging—demonstrating leadership that goes beyond the minimum requirements set by the EU for 2030 and 2040.
