Fost Plus
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersEvere, Belgium
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Fost Plus does
Fost Plus (Fost Plus vzw/asbl) is a Belgian non-profit organization founded in 1994 and headquartered in Evere (Brussels). It operates as the legally recognized Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for household packaging waste in Belgium, managing the collection, sorting, and recycling of packaging placed on the Belgian market by member companies. The organization handles approximately 765,000 tonnes of packaging annually and, in 2022, achieved a 95% household packaging recycling rate with 81% processed domestically.
Fost Plus generates revenue primarily through mandatory Green Dot fees paid by member companies, with rates tiered by packaging material type and recyclability — packaging classified as difficult-to-recycle by the Interregionale Verpakkingscommissie (IVC) can carry fees up to 3,000% higher than standard rates, creating economic incentives for sustainable packaging design. Additional recurring revenue comes from member services, declarations via the MyFost portal, and consulting under the 'No regrets' PPWR playbook. Its product surface includes the Nieuwe Blauwe Zak (New Blue Bag) PMD collection system, the Betersorteren.be consumer guidance site, the Recycle! mobile app, De Sorteerwinkel e-commerce for sorting materials, and the Reduce & Re-Use MatchMaker advisory service.
Operationally, Fost Plus orchestrates a multi-stakeholder infrastructure of five high-tech sorting centers (operated by Indaver, Prezero, Valtris, Val'Up, Sitel) and four-plus recycling facilities including Ecoo Houthalen-Helchteren, Ecoo Beringen, FILAO, and the MOPET Belgium plant in Neufchâteau, with a new Lommel recycling plant opened in January 2026. The technology stack includes optical/infrared sorting, AI-powered sort-quality analysis, and digital watermarks (HolyGrail 2.0 / HolyGrail2030) developed with Digimarc, Pellenc ST, AIM, and brand partners including PepsiCo, Mondelez, Ferrero, and Pladis. Marketing and member engagement run through a multi-language website, blog, webinars, social channels (Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram), and national campaigns such as 'Safe Sorting' and the Smurfs Blue Bag campaign.
Fost Plus firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Fost Plus
- Legal name
- Fost Plus vzw
- Website
- https://fostplus.be
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Fost Plus industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Extended Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste Management)
- NAICS
- Packaging and Labeling Services (56191)
- SIC
- Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Packaging Recovery & Closed-Loop Programs (Take-Back, Deposit-Return, EPR Support) (IMALAMAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Reusable Packaging & Refill Systems (Returnable Transport Items, Deposit/DRS Ops) (EUAIANAE), Reusable & Refill Packaging Systems (Returnable Packaging, Refill-at-Home/In-Store) (IMALAMAE)
Keywords
Where Fost Plus is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Evere
- HQ country
- Belgium
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Fost Plus business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Green Dot fees (Extended Producer Responsibility): Companies placing packaged products on the Belgian market pay Green Dot fees to Fost Plus. The fees are based on the type and quantity of packaging materials, with higher rates for materials that are more difficult to recycle. This funds the collection, sorting, and recycling of household packaging waste.
- Member services and declarations: Companies pay for membership and declaration services. Fost Plus provides services including sustainable packaging consulting, compliance support, and declaration systems (MyFost portal).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Standard Green Dot rates for recyclable packaging |
| Subscription | Annual | Hinderlijke verpakkingen (difficult-to-recycle packaging) rates |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Fost Plus product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Fost Plus is the recognized Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) organization for household packaging in Belgium. It operates the Green Dot system, collecting Green Dot fees from companies that place packaged products on the Belgian market and using those funds to finance the collection, sorting, and recycling of household packaging waste through the Blue Bag (PMD) system and partner infrastructure.
Product overview
Fost Plus operates as the central organization driving Belgium's circular packaging economy. Their core offering is the Nieuwe Blauwe Zak (New Blue Bag) collection system for PMD packaging. The ecosystem includes the MyFost online portal for member declarations and services, De Sorteerwinkel for sorting materials, Betersorteren.be for consumer sorting guidance, and the Recycle! app for collection schedule notifications. Supporting services include the Groene Punt fee structure that incentivizes recyclable packaging design, EPR litter fees, and the Reduce & Re-Use MatchMaker advisory service for companies seeking to avoid or reuse packaging.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Nieuwe Blauwe Zak (New Blue Bag) PMD Collection System Belgium's flagship household PMD (Plastic, Metal, Drinks cartons) curbside collection system used by Belgian households to sort packaging waste via the blue bag. Funded by Green Dot fees paid by member companies.
- MyFost Member Portal
Quantifiable outcome
- 95% of household packaging recycled in 2022
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Fost Plus
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Fost Plus technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Fost Plus partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
23 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- PepsiCocorePartner in HolyGrail2030 – Flexible PP Belgium project, testing digital watermarks on flexible packaging to enable food-safe recycled content from chips bags and snack packaging.
- Mondelēz InternationalcorePartner in HolyGrail2030 – Flexible PP Belgium project to develop food-grade recycled PP from flexible packaging.
- FerrerocorePartner in HolyGrail2030 – Flexible PP Belgium project for digital watermarks on flexible packaging.
- PladiscorePartner in HolyGrail2030 – Flexible PP Belgium project for digital watermarks and food-safe recycled content.
- Hündgen EntsorgungcoreGerman sorting facility conducting sorting trials for HolyGrail2030 project starting June 23, 2026, testing digital watermark detection technology.
- DigimarccoreProvides digital watermark technology for HolyGrail2030 project, enabling invisible codes on packaging for automatic sorting.
- Pellenc STcoreProvides sorting equipment with digital watermark recognition modules for HolyGrail2030 project.
- AIMcoreFacilitates the HolyGrail2030 international program with approximately 75 participating companies and organizations.
- Morssinkhof-Rymoplast GroupcoreDutch company operating the new plastics recycling plant in Lommel, Belgium, processing waste from 80% of Belgian households. Plant expected to create 65 jobs.
- Brussels Airport CompanycorePartnership under the Airport Waste Charter to improve sorting and recycling at Brussels Airport. Deploying liquid bins before security checkpoints doubled PMD collection rate.
- OVAMminorFlemish waste management agency collaborating on smart deposit pilot projects and company inspections for sorting compliance.
- IndavercorePartner for chemical recycling of yogurt pots and foam trays in Plastics2Chemical facility, as well as operating sorting center in Willebroek.
- PrezerocoreOperating high-tech sorting center in Evergem as part of the five sorting centers for New Blue Bag.
- ValtriscoreOperating sorting center in Couillet as part of the five sorting centers for New Blue Bag.
- Val'UpcoreOperating sorting center in Ghlin as part of the five sorting centers for New Blue Bag.
- SitelcoreOperating sorting center in Engis (Huy) with €40+ million investment, processing 40,000 tonnes annually with 46 employees.
- IntradelcoreIntercommunale for waste collection in Liège region, partner in Sitel sorting center investment and New Blue Bag rollout.
- IdeluxcoreIntercommunale for waste collection in Luxembourg province, partner in MOPET Belgium recycling plant site and New Blue Bag rollout.
- NoshaqminorInvestment fund that participated in Sitel sorting center investment partnership.
- Ecobo Houthalen-HelchterencoreRecycling center for plastic packaging from blue bag, operational since 2022.
- Ecobo BeringencoreRecycling center for plastic packaging from blue bag, operational since 2022.
- FILAOcoreIntegrated bottle-to-bottle PET recycling facility in Belgium, partially operational since end of 2022.
- MOPET BelgiumcoreNew PET recycling plant in Neufchâteau, built by Morssinkhof Rymoplast Group, with 40,000 tonne annual capacity and 50 full-time jobs created.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Fost Plus competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Veolia Environmental Services: Global environmental services operator with extensive MRF and recycling infrastructure. Comparable in collection, sorting, and recycling operations although broader scope than packaging-only.
- PreZero: Schwarz Group's environmental services arm operating sorting and recycling facilities, including Fost Plus's Evergem sorting center. Comparable in reverse logistics and MRF operations.
Direct peers
- Reciplas: Spanish packaging EPR scheme managing household and commercial packaging waste recovery. Comparable EPR mandate and member-funded model across Iberian markets.
- Citeo: France's EPR organization for household packaging under the same Green Dot/Picto model. Most analogous peer given shared EPR mandate, fee-for-packaging model, and member-driven non-profit structure.
- Valpak: UK compliance scheme for packaging EPR obligations. Comparable member-funded compliance and recycling administration business for brand owners.
- CONAI: Italian packaging consortium operating the national EPR system across multiple material streams. Similar non-profit, producer-funded structure managing collection and recycling.
- Recycle BC: Canadian EPR organization managing residential packaging and paper recycling in British Columbia with a similar producer-financed, household-collection-focused model.
- Der Grüne Punkt (DSD): Germany's flagship household packaging EPR system, operating dual systems since 1991. Closest continental peer in terms of scale, fee structure, and EPR compliance mandate.
Others
- TOMRA Systems: Provider of optical sorting technology used by Fost Plus's partner sorting centers. Comparable as enabling technology supplier in advanced packaging-sortation lines.
Regional players
- Stichting Verpact (Netherlands): Dutch EPR organization for packaging, operating adjacent to Belgium with overlapping retail/FMCG members. Useful regional comparison given shared Benelux packaging flows.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Fost Plus social profiles
Digital presenceFost Plus financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Fost Plus leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Fost Plus funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Fost Plus M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Fost Plus
What does Fost Plus do?
Fost Plus is the recognized Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) organization for household packaging in Belgium. It operates the Green Dot system, collecting Green Dot fees from companies that place packaged products on the Belgian market and using those funds to finance the collection, sorting, and recycling of household packaging waste through the Blue Bag (PMD) system and partner infrastructure.
Is Fost Plus a public or private company?
Fost Plus is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Fost Plus founded?
Fost Plus was founded in 1994. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Fost Plus based?
Fost Plus is headquartered in Evere, Belgium, in the Europe region.
How does Fost Plus make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Green Dot fees (Extended Producer Responsibility) is the primary driver. The others are member services and declarations.
Who are Fost Plus's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Veolia Environmental Services and PreZero. Direct peers are Reciplas, Citeo, Valpak, CONAI, Recycle BC and Der Grüne Punkt (DSD). TOMRA Systems is listed as an others. Stichting Verpact (Netherlands) is listed as a regional player.
Does Fost Plus have an API?
No public API is recorded for Fost Plus.
What industry is Fost Plus in?
Fost Plus's product category is Extended Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste Management). Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMALAMAF, Packaging Recovery & Closed-Loop Programs (Take-Back, Deposit-Return, EPR Support), with a secondary code of EUAIANAE, Reusable Packaging & Refill Systems (Returnable Transport Items, Deposit/DRS Ops). Its NAICS code is 56191 and its SIC code is 4953.