European recycling under pressure due to shortage of PET bottles

There are too few PET bottles to keep the European recycling industry running. On behalf of recyclers in various countries, the organisation EuPR is sounding the alarm. 'The situation is already starting to become critical for some companies.'

In recent years, European recycling capacity has grown significantly alongside the increasing popularity of both large and small PET bottles on the market. This capacity is therefore highly dependent on the supply of enough discarded PET bottles, both through separate collection and from deposit systems. According to EuPR, the recent decline in that supply is due to several factors. Prices are falling, there has been a long winter, as a result of which people consumed fewer plastic bottles, and the weight of the bottles is steadily decreasing. However, EuPR cites the growing export of collected PET plastic to the Far East as the main reason.

Not transparent

This export has an impact on all EU countries, explains Antonino Furfari of the recyclers' organisation. 'Where the plastic bottles go is not transparent, but total waste exports increased by 47 per cent from 2008 to 2009, to a total of 3,336 Ktons. According to EuPR, this is causing major problems in the supply of recyclers, just as Europe is looking to expand its recycling capacity even further.

According to the organisation, a solution to the problem is to collect more and, above all, to focus on local and regional recycling. Furfari: 'We believe we need to invest in European collection and recycling facilities in order to grow towards a sustainable recycling society. This is the only way we can be sure of a correct end-of-life for our products and grow the use of recycled raw materials. Letting European bottles leak away to Asia, on the contrary, leads to an unsustainable situation.'