PET in Europe: the path to circularity

Can PET plastic be part of the solution to realise a circular economy for packaging in Europe?

The EU’s 2029 target for 90% of PET plastic bottles to be collected for recycling is within reach. We are already at 75%. But we can’t stop there. We Won’t. Our mission is for every PET bottle in Europe to be collected for recycling or reuse. It will require a collective, multi-stakeholder effort. Here’s how we can do it.

Packaging plays a pivotal role as an enabler of the circular economy.

The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) requires that the packaging materials of the future are circular by design, recyclable and reusable. Balancing these criteria with the need for materials to be economically viable, energy efficient and practical for consumers is essential to achieving a circular economy.

With PET plastic, there is no trade-off between circularity, practicality and cost. Not all plastics are the same.  Fully recyclable and reusable packaging materials like PET must be recognised as part of the solution to ending waste in Europe.

Some argue that plastic cannot form part of this circular economy and should be replaced with other materials such as paper, glass or aluminium. However, it’s increasingly understood that circular and non-energy-intensive packaging materials like PET should be treated as part of the solution to ending waste, not the problem.

When assessing a material’s environmental footprint, life-cycle emissions associated with the production and transportation process must be considered.  the life-cycle approach yields the most reliable outcomes. PET offers clear advantages over packaging alternatives such as glass and aluminium. While PET melts at around 260℃, glass requires a temperature of 1600℃, and aluminium melts at over 660 ℃, making PET the least energy-intensive option. Furthermore, PET weighs 10 times less than glass, making transportation significantly easier and generating less CO2 emissions.

Almost uniquely among plastics, PET is designed for recycling and is recycled at scale across Europe. In 2022, 75% of PET bottles in Europe were sorted for recycling (ICIS,2024) compared to 64% in 2020. In some countries such as Germany, over 90% collection has already been achieved. (ICIS, 2024)

It’s no secret that more work needs to be done to ensure recyclable materials do not end up in our environment. Ending packaging waste requires a multi-stakeholder effort, and PET plastic can be part of the solution. Here’s how.

Fully recyclable and reusable packaging materials like PET must be recognised as part of the solution to ending waste in Europe.

There are two effective routes to closing the loop on PET plastic packaging.

Recycling

Despite the spread of an increasing amount of dangerous misinformation regarding its effectiveness, recycling remains the key enabler of circularity for packaging. Recycling is also crucial for a healthy recycled PET market which is essential for member states to achieve the EU’s 2030 target of 30% recycled content target for beverage bottles, established under the SUPD. Currently, the recycled content rate for PET bottles across Europe is 24% (ICIS, 2024).

There are two effective ways to drive collection rates across the EU:

  1. Deposit Return Schemes (DRS) for PET bottles
    As of March 2024, DRS schemes have been implemented in 15 EU countries, covering nearly 170 million citizens. Germany has the world’s largest and highest-performing deposit return scheme, achieving a record 95% return rate on PET plastic bottles (ICIS, 2024).  Other EU countries with DRS include Sweden, Ireland, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. DRS is set to be introduced in Austria, Cyprus, Poland, Czechia and Portugal in 2025. In 2022, 30% of PET bottle collection volumes in Europe were achieved via DRS (ICIS, 2024), demonstrating its growing importance in driving collection and preventing unnecessary waste.
  2. Separate collection schemes for PET bottles
    Separate collection schemes for PET can be just as effective as DRS schemes. In Belgium, for example, 84% of PET bottles are collected for recycling without a DRS system (ICIS, 2024). This is thanks to its uniform collection and sorting system via the Blue Bag as part of normal neighbourhood waste collections. Belgium’s high collection rate has also led to the wider availability of recyclates which is necessary to increase the amount of recycled content in our packaging. Italy is also close to reaching 70% PET collection through its separate collection scheme for plastic. DRS and separate collection schemes are great ways to increase the collection of PET, but they are not ends in themselves. Germany, Belgium and Italy have different approaches to collecting PET, but they’re all effective thanks to significant investments in modern sorting and recycling facilities that produce food-safe PET bottles for their markets. Investment in modern sorting centres and recycling plants is crucial to prevent unnecessary waste and increase the amount of recycled content in PET bottles. Despite positive developments regarding the uptake of DRS and separate collection schemes, there has been an absence of major public investments and clear regulations in the waste management sector. European governments have not been able to prioritise this sector in their budgetary plans. However, to reach the PPWR’s targets, a significant collective effort from industry, governments, brands and consumers is needed to improve collection rates.

Reuse

The second route to closing the loop is reuse. The PPWR makes clear the need for packaging materials to offer options for reuse that are safe, sustainable and economically viable.

The good news is that reusable PET packaging is already a reality. Reusable PET bottles are thicker than ordinary PET bottles and can be found in supermarkets in Germany and Austria already. Compared to reusable glass bottles, reusable PET bottles are approximately 8.5 times lighter (65g vs. 551g), making it a less carbon intensive material over its life cycle. Moreover, PET bottles do not run the risk of breaking in transit during the transportation required for reuse systems.

Consumers can place their crates of reusable PET mineral water bottles outside supermarkets for collection and receive a deposit back, similarly to DRS. Once collected, the PET bottles undergo a thorough cleaning process before being refilled and returned to supermarkets in the same bottle. This is all possible thanks to PET’s robust construction and specialised material composition, making it easy for manufacturers to clean and refill. These PET bottles can be reused up to 25 times before being recycled into new products. This is a closed-loop circular economy for PET packaging in action.

What is the industry doing to reduce waste?

In addition to collection and reuse efforts, the PET industry is also working to reduce overall virgin PET consumption. It is estimated that the volume of recycled PET (rPET) used for bottle production increased by 50% between 2020 and 2022, with some producers already commercialising bottles made entirely from 100% rPET (ICIS, 2024).

Producers are also investing in design solutions to improve the circularity of PET. They’re exploring label adhesives that dissolve in cold water, labelless bottles, monomaterial packages with the bottle and cap also made of PET, digital watermarking and the deployment of AI for sorting waste (ICIS, 2024). Another area of focus is weight optimisation: lightweighting techniques, especially in bottle necks, have shown impressive weight reductions between 16% and 52% (ICIS, 2024).

Progress is also being made among recyclers. Machinery manufacturers are investing heavily in research and development to enhance recycling infrastructures – for instance, by integrating granulators in PET recycling lines, which are improving the efficiency of the bottle-to-pellet reprocessing.

‘A circular, safe and convenient packaging material’

The packaging materials of tomorrow have to tick many boxes. EU policy should support materials that are circular by design, easily recyclable and reusable, safe, energy-efficient and convenient to use. PET plastic ticks all the boxes. We encourage legislators to support European PET manufacturers also in approaching new technologies in Chemical Recycling  and promote a profitable market for recyclates and reusable options.

Circular packaging materials like PET plastic must be part of the solution if we want to deliver on the EU Green Deal. But we need a clear and forward-looking regulatory environment to realise the circular economy and safeguard European competitiveness.