New figures from the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) reveal that more than 400,000 tonnes of used PET bottles are now being collected and recycled into fibre, film, strapping and new bottles in the EU.
Speaking to an Autumn Round-Table Session of the Bureau, Dutch recycler Jan Snellenberg said that constant improvements in technology had meant that recyclers were able to produce a material 'c;lose to virgin' that could be used directly in food contact applications.
However, Mr Snellenberg expressed concerns over unstable virgin prices, a lack of consistency in the interpretation of EU law and the influence of 'c;heap labour' countries on world markets.
He said countries such as China were threatening Europe's recycling industry by their willingness to pay prices “we absolutely cannot afford”.
BIR plastics committee chairman Peter Daalder added his concerns over exports, calling prices being paid by the Asian market “crazy”, as much as 50% higher than European processors were able to afford. Some companies in Germany were losing 300,000 euros a month, Mr Daalder claimed.
Representatives of other countries reported mixed fortunes for the year with Spanish recyclers highlighting “big problems” especially in black polystyrene and HDPE, while the French reported PET bottle prices increasing daily as demand strengthened.
One potential boost to the European PET recycling sector could come from possible plans by the Belgian government to require all new plastic bottles to contain at least 50% recycled content, the session heard.
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