BIR Summit Debates Future Opportunities for Recovered Paper

The staged decline in imports of recovered paper by China has been beneficial to the recycling sector.

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Bureau of International Recycling’s (BIR’s) Paper Division panel discussed future opportunities for recovered paper during the recently held World Recycling Convention Week. The panel was moderated by Sébastien Ricard of France-based Paprec.

Ranjit Singh Baxi of U.K.-based J&H Sales International noted that the Chinese annual imports of recovered paper are expected to fall to just around 5 million metric tons in 2020. This compares with around 27 million metric tons in 2017 and 19 million metric tons in 2018. The staged decline in imports of recovered paper by China has been beneficial to the recycling sector. It has helped the world market to reposition itself, finding new alternative markets.

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Jean-Luc Petithuguenin, President-BIR Paper Division noted that Europe has witnessed new capacity for recovered paper consumption. This clearly demonstrates that new markets have emerged, thereby offsetting the loss of orders from China, he added.

The actions by the Turkish government to safeguard domestic paper recycling sector has converted the country to be a promising market in future. The country had recently limited allowed imports by paper recyclers to only 50% of their production capacity, from the earlier allowed limit of 80%. The Convention hoped that other countries would follow suit to protect domestic industries.