OBP Plastic Producers and Users Standard (Ocean Bound Plastic)

What is the OBP Plastic Producers and Users Standard?

Forming the industrial manufacturing leg of the Ocean Bound Plastic (OBP) Certification Program developed by Zero Plastic Oceans (ZPO), this standard is designed for manufacturers who purchase recycled OBP raw materials (such as pellets, flakes, yarn, or fiber) and transform them into semi-finished or finished goods—like packaging, textiles, automotive parts, or consumer products. Acting as the critical bridge between recycling facilities and retail brands, this module ensures that "ocean plastic" claims are not lost on the assembly line and guarantees that conventional plastics are not fraudulently mixed into the process to achieve unearned sustainability credentials (greenwashing).

Key Technical Criteria of the OBP Producers and Users Standard

Rather than focusing on the broader environmental or social compliance of the facility, this standard is hyper-focused on the mathematical and physical flow of materials within the plant. The technical framework can be summarized as follows:

• Traceability and Chain of Custody:

  • Strict procedures are enforced to prevent the unauthorized mixing of incoming OBP raw materials with conventional plastics throughout product formulations (recipes) and the manufacturing line.

  • Depending on the facility's production capabilities, it must implement either a Segregation model (keeping materials physically separated at all times) or a Mass Balance model (strictly accounting for the ratio of OBP volume entering versus leaving the facility).

• Transaction Certificates (TCs):

  • Manufacturers must source OBP raw materials exclusively from certified suppliers accompanied by TCs. When selling their semi-finished/finished goods to brands or other buyers, they must issue outgoing TCs detailing the exact OBP content percentage. This transparent paper trail is the backbone of the OBP supply chain.

• Production Records and Conversion Rates:

  • Material losses (waste) that occur during melting, molding, or spinning, along with exact material conversion rates, must be meticulously recorded. This allows auditors to mathematically verify exactly "how much OBP-containing product was generated from 1 ton of OBP raw material input."

Who this standard is for

The OBP Plastic Producers and Users Standard is for converters, compounders, and manufacturers that put OBP recyclate into packaging or products they sell to brands or end users. It sits between the recycler and the Brand standard.

What is certified

• Compounding, converting, moulding, or otherwise processing OBP recyclate
• Chain of custody of OBP lots through the plant
• Sales documents that carry the OBP claim to a certified brand or another user
• Percentage calculations in masterbatch, sheet, bottle, or component

What this standard does not cover

• Collection in the field
• A consumer-facing brand logo if the Brand standard is not held
• NEU neutrality services

Questions buyers and operators usually ask

The brand is OBP-certified. Do we still need Producer/User?

If you physically process OBP recyclate and sell components or packaging, you are typically in this module. The brand certificate does not automatically cover your extrusion line.

Can we dilute OBP recyclate with virgin polymer?

Yes as a technical process; the OBP percentage on the claim must match the dilution and the allowed claim model. Calling a 5% OBP blend “ocean-bound packaging” without the percentage is misleading.

Is this the same as a recycled-content ISCC PLUS mass-balance certificate?

No. Different scheme, different origin story. Buyers that specify OBP want OBP documents, not a generic mass-balance credit from another system.

Do multi-site converters need every plant in scope?

Every site that handles claimed OBP lots must be in the certification scope. Shipping OBP pellets to an uncertified sister plant breaks the chain.

What to have ready before the audit

• Incoming recycler documents for OBP lots
• Recipes and dilution factors for each claimed article
• Production records linking input lots to output SKUs
• Customer list of OBP-certified brands you supply
• Sites and subcontracted converters

Frequent findings

• Brand hangtags applied at a converter that is not Brand-certified and not authorised
• OBP percentage ignored after virgin let-down
• Sister plant out of scope
• ISCC or GRS paperwork used instead of OBP