In an article from June 18, 2019, industry association Plastic Recyclers Europe announced the publication of a paper identifying necessary changes to increase recycling of flexible polyethylene films often used in food packaging. Annual demand for the films by plastic converters in Europe is reported as 9 million metric tons, however only 31% of films are recycled. The paper identifies low collection rates, low quality of input materials, and lack of design for recycling as the main barriers for increasing the recycling rate. “Plastic film waste is still perceived as a demanding and difficult stream to treat, however, we in Europe have proven that even stretch film recycling is possible,” said Ton Emans, President of Plastics Recyclers Europe, “nonetheless, to reach for the additional quantities from post-consumer packaging we need a strong commitment of the value chain to work towards making this material fully sustainable.”
The paper calls for “harmonized collection and sorting processes at the EU level” and advocates that “specific design for recycling guidelines must be followed when manufacturing a product and when introducing any kind of innovation on the market.” Continued investment in advancing sorting technologies as well as research and development “is [also] needed to continuously enhance the quality of recycled material.”
Read more
Plastic Recyclers Europe (June 17, 2019). “Flexible polyethylene recycling in Europe: Accelerating the transition towards a circular economy.”
Reference
Plastic Recyclers Europe (June 17, 2019). “Flexible polyethylene recycling in Europe: Accelerating the transition towards a circular economy.” (pdf)
