Around 41,660 tonnes of waste are wrongly placed in Belgium’s PMD bags each year, accounting for 13.5% of the total collected and adding millions of euros in avoidable costs, Fost Plus warned on Wednesday.
The organisation, which coordinates the recycling and reuse of packaging waste in Belgium, said sorting mistakes continue to place a significant burden on the system.
Following a summer heatwave, Fost Plus said it had seen a spike in plastic items such as inflatable pools, air mattresses and water pistols being thrown into PMD bags.
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It stressed that only plastic or metal packaging and drinks cartons should be placed in those bags.
“Sorting machines are designed to process packaging waste and are not suited to larger or heavier objects, such as broken toys,” said Fost Plus spokesperson Valerie Bruyninckx.
She said such items can become stuck in the facilities, disrupt the sorting process and, in some cases, even cause damage.
Fost Plus urged people to take unwanted summer toys to a recycling park instead, where they can be handled properly.
The extra cost caused by these wrongly sorted items is estimated at about €1,000 per tonne. According to Fost Plus, the bill linked to these sorting errors reached €40 million in 2025.
Although packaging companies bear that cost, Fost Plus said it can ultimately be passed on to consumers through higher prices.
It also warned that valuable materials are being lost and that opportunities for recycling or reuse are being missed.
