EuPR calls for separate PET tray recycling

Plastics Recyclers Europe (EuPR), whose members make up around 80% of the plastics recycling capacity across Europe claims that the design and chemical composition of PET bottles and trays prevents them from being recycled effectively when collected together.

And, the group claims that separate recycling of PET trays would increase the quality of the material, and result in increased investment in recycling solutions for the material.

Casper van den Dungen, EuPRs PET chairman, said: Trays and bottles are two different types of products which cannot be recycled in the same recycling line. Their designs and chemical compositions are not the same and can create quality problems for existing PET recyclers.

The collection schemes and sorting centres cannot push this issue down the value chain.

According to EuPR there are around 700,000 tonnes of PET trays consumed annually in Europe which could be recycled if properly separated from other streams such as PET bottles or polyolefins.

Value chain

The group says that a joint value chain approach is needed to encourage recycling of PET trays and has warned that one-sided actions could endanger the recycling of the material in Europe.

However, UK plastics sector body Recoup has questioned EuPRs assertion that PET bottles and trays can only be effectively recycled when processed separately, arguing that the materials are often together in rPET production at UK processing facilities.

Recoup estimates that there are around 70,000 tonnes of PET trays being collected in the UK each year, some of which is then used rPET production.

According to Paul East, the organisations packaging technician, although separate processing of the material would help to drive up the quality of recycled PET trays that are available, the materials can still be processed together.

Speaking to letsrecycle.com, he said: What is being said is that PET bottles and trays cannot be recycled together, but in the UK we use a fair amount of rPET, recycled PET which can include material obtained from those sources.

Manufacturers of rPET sheet, used for trays and both food and non-food packaging manufacture, include sources which could include bottles.

It is undoubtedly preferable to collect them separately if you are coming from the view of quality, but to say that they are not mixed at all may be misleading. Studies are ongoing to explore whether bottles and trays could and should be recycled separately from a commercial perspective.