Plastic recyclers see a 'glimmer of hope' despite a tough market

He pointed out that most of these were not related to PET, but to polymers such as PP and PE.

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Regulators, producers and brand owners were called on to “step up” their commitments to plastic recycling and a circular economy at the BIR’s World Recycling Convention in Bangkok.

Introducing the Plastics Division plenary session on 27 October, Henk Alssema, divisional President and CEO, INVIPLAST (NLD) set out the continued challenging market for plastics recyclers across almost every region. But he also gave a message of hope.

Delegates heard that, by the end of 2025, nearly one million tonnes of recycling capacity will have disappeared from the market in Europe over a two-year period. Virgin prices remain low, squeezing margins and pushing recycled material out of the market, while economic growth is slow.

Mr Alssema said: “It's the same story everywhere: low virgin prices, thin margins and too little certainty to invest. When times get this tough, it's easy to lose faith, to think maybe that this industry has no future. But in my opinion, the opposite is true. Every circular revolution starts in a downturn. When things break down, that's when new ideas break through.”

He added: “We invested, we innovated and, most importantly, we stayed in the game, even when it hurt. But now it's time for others to step up and match that commitment, from regulators to producers and brand owners, because without a strong recycling industry, there is no circular economy, but only a circle of good intentions.”

There have been positives, including the “glimmer of hope” in news that the European Union was planning to support recyclers. France’s introduction, in January 2026, of financial incentives for companies that use recycled content is another important development, which could set the example for others. In the Middle East, growth is expected as governments push bans on single-use plastic and circular economy initiatives.

When discussing the current market, Max Craipeau, the CEO of Greencore Resources Limited (Hong Kong, China), said that it was an understatement to describe it as 'depressed or bad'. He argued that the loss of one million tonnes of plastics recycling capacity from Europe over two years had actually happened in just one year if you combined shutdowns across Europe, Asia and the US. He pointed out that most of these were not related to PET, but to polymers such as PP and PE.

Mr Craipeau said that the “major culprit” in the sector’s loss of capacity was cheap oil. He disagreed with the view that material imported into Europe from Asia, North Africa and South America was responsible for the shutdowns.

“The low price of oil means the low price of virgin material, so users can definitely give up their commitment to using recycled content because they can get much cheaper material with virgin polymers,” he said.

'To give you an idea of the difference, you can currently find virgin PET in Europe, the US or any other developed market for US$800 per tonne. Recycled PET costs twice as much, so it's very hard to compete. Unless you have a strong government mandate, such as the Single Use Plastics Directive in Europe or other mandates in the US, brands will typically abandon their commitments and opt for cheaper materials.

 Courtesy: www.waste-management-world.com