PET disparities creating ‘potholes’

The average recycled content of plastic bottles produced in the EU has reached 24%. This means more work is still needed to achieve the 2025 EU targets.

Despite global market uncertainty over the last two years, figures show advancement in the polyethylene (PET) market. PET collection and recycling accelerated in 2022 ahead of the new EU Single Use Plastic Directive targets. Its latest data is published here.

This is a positive step towards the EU’s ambitions, which include a PET beverage bottle collection target rate of 77% by 2025 as well as a recycled content of at least 25% recycled PET for bottles.

Collections grow

Additionally, the collection rate of PET in 2022 was 60%. This represents an increase from the 45% achieved in 2020. Furthermore, the ‘sorted for recycling’ rate for PET beverage bottles alone is estimated to be 75%, compared to 61% in 2020.

This collection rate is expected to keep growing, due to the wider rollout of deposit-return systems (DRS) across Europe. In 2022, 12 countries in EU 27+3 were reported to be operating this collection method, while nine have taken the political decision to introduce DRS.       

Bottle-to-bottle increase

Approximately 2.7 million tonnes of PET waste were sorted for recycling in 2022. In addition, the total installed recycling capacity averaged around three million tonnes. Almost 1.5 million tonnes were destined for food contact applications.

Extrusion capacity for recycled PET pellet production doubled to 1.4 million tonnes that year, adds Petcore, the association representing the complete PET value chain.

Packaging was the dominant end use for recycled PET in 2022, with 48% used for bottles. ‘This shows a very positive increase in bottle-to-bottle recycling in Europe,’ says Petcore.

Another 25% of recycled PET was used in sheets (trays), and the remainder was used in non-packaging applications including polyester fibres (15%), strapping (6%) and others (6%). The value chain has also already taken steps towards tray recycling and chemical recycling.

Action needed

Petcore points out that around 800 000 tonnes of recycled PET are required to meet the mandatory content targets for 2025 within the Single Use Plastics Directive. Supplying the necessary quantity and quality of feedstocks remains a challenge.

‘To continue the trend towards true circularity, the disparities between EU Member States in terms of collection, recycling and uptake will need to be tackled,’ the organisation urges. Some countries are unlikely to meet 2025 targets without greater investment in a better waste collection and recycling infrastructure.

Petcore insists the ‘disparities’ in the collection, sorting and recycling of PET across Europe will need to be addressed to achieve ambitious recycling targets in the mid and long-term.