MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 04/22 www.petpla.net 10 How the industry continues to expand in Europe - Focus on PET Plastics recycling, part of the puzzle Interview with Casper van den Dungen, Vice President Plastics Recyclers Europe & PET Working Group Chairman PETplanet: What is the state of affairs in the plastics recycling industry in Europe? Casper: Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is one of the most widely used recycled plastics and at the same time the most widely recycled polymer destined for food contact applications. Just 20 years ago recycled beverage bottles (PET) were used to produce fibres (for strapping or clothing, for example). Back then the technology was not developed to allow recycling into food contact applications and no framework was set in place to regulate that. Only in 2008, through Regulation 282/2008, a procedure for authorisation of recycling processes for PET in food contact applications was established. Following these changes, the market for recycled beverage bottles has been steadily growing and nowadays, the majority of PET beverage bottles are recycled via closed-loop systems back into packaging. The EU is the worldwide pioneer in terms of legislation on recycling and specifically on food contact recycling, as it has one of the most robust rules and standards, ensuring highest health and safety standards for this material. Many brands include recycled plastic to pack their mineral water bottles or soft drinks, as recycled PET can be used to make new food contact bottles with even 100% recycled content. Beyond recycled material being used in bottles it is used, for example, in trays. Already 1 out of 2 trays (used to pack ham, cheese, salads), or blister packs incorporates rPET. Both of these applications were possible largely thanks to the EU targets introduced in 1994, their consecutive revision back in 2008, the establishment of the regulation on the use of recycled plastic in food contact materials, and finally the introduction of the Circular Economy Package in 2015. Another important factor here, are massive advancements in recycling technologies, and, in general, within the value chain. The examples of technological developments include changes in the product design like intelligent labels which can indicate where to recycle the product. Additionally, sorting of products is no longer manual but has moved to more reliable automated systems which include robotic-like separation technology. These advancements helped overcome the limitations that were hampering the use of recycled materials in a broad range of applications including high value products. Some of these limitations include design for recycling of the products, their sortability or cleaning operations – to name a few. The optimisation of these processes at each step of the value chain started many years ago, paving the way towards PET’s circularity. Legislative incentives and technological advancements resulted in increased efficiency and effectiveness of the recycling processes, while increasing the sustainability of every new cycle. PETplanet: How is PET recycling performing currently? Casper: There is a steady move towards circularity of the PET industry in Europe. New study for collection, recycling capacity and production of PET for 2020 shows increases - in comparison to 2018 - in all measured factors. Major growth is observed, in particular, within the PET recycling market, with an overall 21% increase in the installed capacity, totaling 2.8mt in EU27+3. Main new capacities which have been installed recently are the decontamination lines to convert the washed bottles or trays to food grade pellets. Concerning the recycled PET market there is a potential shift away from virgin production towards recycled material production. In 2020, 1.7mt of recycled PET was produced, with a steady growth within trays and sheets application, which with a 32% share remain the largest outlet for rPET in packaging, followed by beverage bottles with a 29% share. On the collection figures 61% of beverage bottles were collected & sorted for recycling in Europe - a 9% increase in comparison to 2018. Concerning the food contact grade of recycled PET, mechanical recycling is the predominant process with the highest benefits when it comes to CO2 savings. It is clear as well that the legislative framework contributed to increasing an uptake of food contact rPET. The legal requirement to include 25% rPET content in mineral and soft drink bottles by 2025 together with the collection target for PET of 90% by 2029 are the main drivers. This growth is to continue developing rapidly in response to producers’ pledges and average recycled content targets. The new legislation impacted equally the developments of new Deposit Return Systems (DRS) which allow for a higher quality of collected material. This growth needs to be programmed inline to the what the current installed capacities can absorb. The availability of certified active statistical data is needed to help us in mastering this challenge. PETplanet: Where do you see our industry in 10 years from now? Casper: To reach the 30% recycled content target for beverage bottles by 2030, 3.6mt of PET will have to be sent for recycling (in comparison Casper van den Dungen, Vice President Plastics Recyclers Europe & PET Working Group Chairman
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