Rigid polyolefins: increased quality collection & sorting a must to reach the EU recycling targets

With the current EU recycling capacity for HDPE and PP at 1.2Mt for post-consumer and additional 0.5Mt for pre-consumer waste, the recycling facilities can treat roughly 18% of rigid polyolefin waste. The scaling up of the EU plastics recycling capacity hinges on ensuring that the maximum of plastic waste is captured for recycling. Advancing collection and sorting were identified as key to unlock the much-needed investments in the recycling of rigid polyolefins. 

‘Capturing additional tonnages and sorting out pots tubs and trays, is just one of the examples of making the change,’ said Werner Kruschitz, PRE PP/PO Working Group Chairman.  

Driving the uptake of recyclates, is equally important. 

‘The recycled rigid polyolefins content must be widened, said Herbert Snell, PRE HDPE Working Group Chairman, he added: ‘The existing trend of fully circular uses of rigid polyolefin recyclate, where rHDPE from bottles is used in bottle production, and HDPE and PP crates can be recycled back into crates, must continue to grow’.  

Making rigid polyolefins fully circular depends as well on ensuring a product is readily recyclable. This will allow maintaining the highest value of the material at its end of life but will also play into making recycling more cost-effective while meeting the requirements of even the most demanding applications. Additionally, filling the existing legislative gaps to drive the uptake of recyclates, by for example using public procurement, is yet another solution that must be fully exploited.  

Rigid polyolefins stream has a potential for a greater contribution to plastic packaging recycling targets. However, to further develop recycling infrastructure and markets for this grade in Europe collaboration of the industry together with European policy-makers is critical.  

[1] HDPE & PP Market in Europe: State of Play

[2] An estimated 2–2.5 Mt of PP is used in flexible films (including flexible packaging) and 0.7 Kt of HDPE across construction and packaging films. Additionally, textiles account for roughly 2 Mt of PP and 200 kt of HDPE.