PETpla.net Insider 11 / 2020

TRADE SHOW REVIEW PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 11/20 www.petpla.net 42 today all economic activity in the country is now at 90% of normal. In Q1 of this year they also had major logistic issues, like India. Now produc- tion is at a reasonably high level, and more capacity is coming onstream in the polyester chain. They see tougher competition inside China, while exports are still lagging. Following questions from the audi- ence, all the producers indicated how seriously they are investing in rPET lines, and are keeping their options open in using either chemical or mechanical recycling systems. The round table went on with the participation of a number of important PET converters expressing their point of view. Mr Christian Mayr , Global Pur- chasing Dir. of Alpla, said how quickly his Group reacted to the Covid threat, having been well informed in advance by their China of fi ce. He also noted that the image of plastic dramatically improved in the eyes of the fi nal con- sumers, as they now appreciate better food wrapped in a plastic fi lm, as it promotes the idea of better protection and cleanliness. Mr Paolo Cescutti , CPO of AMB SpA, stated that, as his group was fully involved in the packag- ing business, they had made enor- mous efforts to cope with the surge in demand from supermarkets and food chains during the spring. People now realise the importance of plastic packaging in preserving food, and the industry should take every opportu- nity of reminding consumers of this vital fact. Mr Massimo Cutolo , CEO of Gar- daplast & IFAP, explained the early dif- fi culties they encountered in the battle against Covid inside the company, with no masks or hand sanitisers available at the beginning. They hope that in 2021 economy will recover, and the arrival of a vaccine will help greatly. He also pointed out that there is the big question mark on the Plastic Tax both in Italy and Europe. Mr Mathieu Haels , Strategic Busi- ness Dev. at Plastipak, is convinced that the impact of the Covid issue on the economy will last for years. He also expressed the fear that there will be other virus pandemics, causing even larger problems to the world economy and to people’s behaviour. Mr Jonathan Glickfeld, GM of Visy Trading, Singapore, stated that he had not noticed any movement in PET demand which remained fl at, same as 2019. On the other hand, his com- pany saw a surge of 20% in the use of aluminium cans and canned food, like fruits, beans and also spaghetti. Consumer behaviour has changed in a signi fi cant way; people are cooking more at home as they are now working from home. Responding to several questions on rPET, the above converters agreed that the public will embrace it, and will be ready to pay more for more recycled material. However, there is not enough rPET in the market, so it will be neces- sary to push harder on collection activity around the world. The webinar gave the platform to the opinion of the bottlers, with some big names participating. Mr Malik Bechar , Global Procure- ment, Coca-Cola, explained that Covid affected more the hospitality sector, while supermarkets were less hit. That caused a fall in PET use, both virgin and rPET. Some recovery will be seen but only at the end of 2020. Coca-Cola is already using less and less virgin, while increasing the use of recycled material. Mr Carlo Pontecorvo , President of Ferrarelle, Italy, said that the pandemic had not affected his company unduly sales volumes were 4% higher than in 2019. It was true that sales to the hospi- tality sector dropped dramatically, and it was only in August and September that there was some normal activity in this sector. Ferrarelle has its own recycling plant, and all their bottles are made of 50% rPET. Mr Coert Michielsen , CPO of Refresco Holding, stated that even during the pandemic they kept their 60 plants open and working, in safe condi-