Doinita Mihai, TOMRA: “We can no longer talk about innovative technology and solutions without mentioning artificial intelligence”

“Our company was founded based on an innovation in response to a challenge from brewers and retailers regarding the management of beverage packaging. Since 1972, TOMRA has been delivering innovative solutions. Nowadays, we can no longer talk about technology and innovative solutions without mentioning artificial intelligence,” Doinita Mihai, VP Public Affairs Eastern Europe South, TOMRA said at Circular Economy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest and Sustainability-Today. 

Key statements:

• In TOMRA’s three divisions , @TOMRA Collection, @TOMRA Recycling and @TOMRA Food, we offer solutions that use artificial intelligence. For example, in TOMRA Recycling we develop advanced sensor-based sorting technologies for different materials, continuously pushing the boundaries of what can be recovered, reused and reintroduced into the economy.
• Optical sorters have long used artificial intelligence to improve the automation of collection and sorting by material type, to improve the purity of recovered materials and the colour sorting process. Extending the scope of discussion besides packaging and packaging waste, one example is the ability to accurately sort processed and untreated wood types.
• How was 2024 for us? We launched Gain Next, a solution based on deep learning technology, and one of its applications is the separation of food-grade plastics from non-food plastics. When these solutions are combined with conventional sorting technology, the recovered materials can be used for recycling in higher-end applications and very often in closed-loop applications.
• In 2024, TOMRA acquired a 25% stake in PolyPerception, a start-up offering AI-based waste stream monitoring, to further strengthen our position in the industry and to offer cutting-edge solutions to the current needs of our partners.
• Within the new division – TOMRA Horizon – we explore new business opportunities to bring added value to our partners. We want to create impactful solutions to facilitate the transition to a circular economy.
• Such solutions were put to practice in a partnership developed with the Municipality of Aarhus and entities from HoReCa sector to create a complete take back system for reusable cups. After one year of operations 750 000 cups were collected and some of them reached 33 rotations demonstrating that technology can enable the achievement of ambitious targets.
• In 2024, we acquired 80% of the shares of c-trace, a German leader in digital waste management solutions. The company provides data-driven digital solutions, combining software with sensor equipment for vehicles, RFID technology, artificial intelligence, for the waste management sector. This allows us to manage these resources intelligently and more efficiently. More details in TOMRA’s annual report here 
• We want these solutions to be part of the innovation that Romania needs. There is legislation in force and some objectives that will be very difficult for us to achieve. We believe that existing solutions must also be taken into account when making legislative changes. We can draw inspiration from the experience of other states that have been in this situation and thus save time and resources so that development in Romania is based on new technologies.
• Romania affords the luxury to look into solutions that passed the test of time. The DRS implemented in Romania was inspired by other DRS systems implemented in other countries. At global level it seems that return to retail is the most efficient way from different perspectives. From consumers’ perspective, because it is an easy formula, where they buy-they return, but also from the overall cost of the system. Such retail infrastructure optimizes the coverall cost of the system. DRS is the example that we can do it. Now we need to continue the reform.
• Before looking for sources of financing, we need to analyse what kind of projects we want to finance to avoid a similar experience when developing the Integrated Waste Management Systems programs few years back. I think we need an evaluation of current solutions, which may be outdated or rudimentary. Looking at Romania’s today’s performance of deviating from the landfill between 12% to 15%, if ambitious maybe 18%, looking at producer’s pledges of using recycled content material of 30%, 50% sometimes even 100% in the new products and packaging, we wonder why we don’t progress. Today, waste sorting is still done manually, with people standing at the end of conveyor belts. The human eye can not differentiate between the multitude of plastic types, in exchange the technology can identify the different types of polymers making the recovery process more efficient.
• Romania has already paid 1 billion euroto the EU budget through the plastic tax. This is a shocking amount considering that we still have to develop in our country ways of managing the resources that exist but currently are wasted. There is money and funding available, but unfortunately, we fail to direct the funds towards efficient development.
• Looking at the PPWR objectives and at the following 5 years, we are late in actions. According to the statement of the Environment Minister, Romania is looking into extending DRS also to refillable bottles for beverage containers. Regardless we are talking about collection targets, recycled content targets, deviating the resources from the landfill or about refillable targets, we understand that we need infrastructure to reach them. Our solutions represent infrastructure to redirect these resources back to economy.