Brazil implements new packaging legislation mandating recycled content and reverse logistics systems
A new piece of legislation has come into effect in Brazil in January 2026, mandating the minimum proportion of recycled content in plastic packaging and the formation of reverse logistics systems to recover and recycle plastic packaging.
In October 2025, Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, issued Decree No. 12,688 – a decree that established mandatory reverse logistics systems for plastic packaging and implemented regulation surrounding the minimum amount of recycled content that must be present within new plastic packaging. The decree impacts the automotive sector amongst others such as fast-moving consumer goods and electronics.
Figure 1: Brazil's national targets for plastic packaging recovery
| Year | Minimum national recovery percentage |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 32% |
| 2027 | 33% |
| 2028 | 35% |
| 2029 | 36% |
| 2030 | 37% |
| 2031 | 38% |
| 2032 | 40% |
| 2033 | 41% |
| 2034 | 42% |
| 2035 | 43% |
| 2036 | 45% |
| 2037 | 46% |
| 2038 | 47% |
| 2039 | 48% |
| 2040 | 50% |
These new initiatives are aimed at addressing Brazil’s historically low recycling rates for plastic in an effort to encourage shared responsibility for waste and transition the country towards a circular economy.
According to Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA), the measures are aligned with the country’s National Solid Waste Policy (PNRS), provides the foundational legal framework for how waste is managed in Brazil. This policy aims to reduce waste generation, promote reuse and recycling, ensure environmentally sound disposal of waste and assign shared responsibility for waste across the entire product life cycle.
Mandatory reverse logistics systems for plastic packaging
This latest decree makes these requirements even clearer, setting out minimum percentages for the recovery of plastic packaging that increase incrementally for a period of over a decade.
As Figure 1 shows, these targets begin in 2026 with a target of 32% plastic packaging recovered. The target gets higher by one or two percentage points each year, up to a target of 50% in 2040.
The decree clearly defines the obligated parties when it comes to compliance, including manufacturers, importers, distributors, and traders. It sets out multiple compliance pathways, including collective systems, individual systems and hybrid models, but makes clear that all systems must be formally structures, registered with the authorities and capable of auditing.
It also introduces strong data and transparency requirements, including measurement of packaging placed on the market, tracking of collection and recycling flows, annual reporting and independent auditing.
Failure to comply with these targets could result in administrative fines, suspension of activities and loss of environmental licences, as well as reputational and ESG risks.
Speaking on the decree, Brazil’s national secretary of urban environment, water resources and environmental quality, Adalberto Maluf, said in a translated statement: “The decree encourages the return of plastic packaging to the production cycle, generating green jobs, socio-productive inclusion of recyclable material collectors, preservation of natural resources and reduction of inappropriate disposal, reducing soil and water pollution and impacts on marine biodiversity.”
Minimum recycled content requirements for plastic packaging
The decree also introduces a legal obligation to reincorporate post-consumer recycled plastic into new plastic packaging placed on the Brazilian market. This transforms recycled content from a voluntary or ESG-driven practice into a regulatory compliance requirement.
Figure 2: Brazil’s national targets for recycled content in plastic packaging
| Year | Minimum national recycled content percentage |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 22% |
| 2027 | 24% |
| 2028 | 26% |
| 2029 | 28% |
| 2030 | 30% |
| 2031 | 31% |
| 2032 | 32% |
| 2033 | 33% |
| 2034 | 34% |
| 2035 | 35% |
| 2036 | 36% |
| 2037 | 37% |
| 2038 | 38% |
| 2039 | 39% |
| 2040 | 40% |
As shown in Figure 2, 22% of new packaging in Brazil this year must be recycled content. Just as with the plastic packaging recovery requirements, these minimum percentages will increase by one or two percentage points per year until 2040, when the minimum will be set at 40%.
These recycled content thresholds are mandatory, apply nationwide and are binding on large companies that place plastic packaging on the Brazilian market. The exact percentages and implementation timelines are set out in the decree and may be further detailed or adjusted through subsequent implementing acts.
The recycled content obligation applies to all plastic packaging placed on the Brazilian market, including packaging associated with both manufactured and imported goods. It is not limited to consumer goods packaging, also covering industrial and transport packaging – including the automotive sector.
Compliance obligations apply to manufacturers and importers. Legal responsibility is linked to the act of placing plastic packaging on the Brazilian market, rather than to the entity that physically manufactures the packaging material itself.
The decree requires companies to be able to demonstrate compliance with recycled content requirements, to maintain documentation and traceability of the recycled materials used, and to report recycled content data as part of their reverse logistics reporting obligations. These requirements are intended to prevent unsupported or purely self-declared claims regarding recycled content.
Compliance with recycled content requirements is subject to regulatory oversight, including audits, verification procedures and cross checks against reverse logistics performance data. Failure to comply with recycled content obligations can trigger the same enforcement mechanisms and penalties that apply to failures to meet packaging recovery and recycling targets.
Flexible packaging in Latin America
This comes as the flexible packaging market in Latin America is projected to grow from $10.4 billion in 2025 to $14.72 billion by 2035, according to data from Precedence Research.
Analysts noted that the region’s flexible packaging market (meaning packaging made from easily adaptable materials like plastic and paper) is being driven by factors including demand for cost-efficient packaging, while increasing adoption of sustainable materials by regional manufacturers has further accelerated market momentum.
Elsewhere in Latin America, Chile introduced extended producer responsibility (EPR) targets for plastic packaging from 2025, Mexico introduced new tariffs on imported packaging and paper products in 2024 and Colombia launched its National Strategy for Circular Economy in 2019.
The market for automotive parts packaging in Latin America generated total revenues of $634m in 2024 and, according to Grand View Research, is projected to reach $794m by 2030, with Brazil expected to register the highest compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in the region from 2025 to 2030.
