Carbon emissions, UK legislation and the role of industry in helping consumers to choose correctly were front of mind at last week's RECOUP conference, write Will Collins and Chloe Kinner
The plastic supply chain needs to become less carbon intensive to preserve its environmental advantage compared with other materials, and supporting the recycling industry through a challenging period will play a central role, delegates heard at last week's RECOUP conference in Peterborough, UK.
Plastic currently has a competitive advantage compared with many competing packaging materials when viewed through life cycle analysis of carbon emissions, particularly because its light weight reduces pollution during transport and its barrier properties lessen wastage. But this may not last forever, said Kinza Sutton from sustainable packaging organisation Plastipak, and with carbon set to be "the big topic of the future" the industry needs to focus today on reducing emissions linked to production, which she said are responsible for around two thirds of those generated over the whole lifecycle.
But several speakers also emphasised the need to consider environmental gains in the context of the UK and Europe's competitiveness on the global stage. Stuart Hayward-Higham, innovation officer of waste management firm Suez, said "governments in the UK and Europe need to be conscious of the administrative burden on businesses", and called for regulators to align standards with neighbouring countries to boost efficiency and ensure a level playing field.
Ermis Panagiotopoulos of global PET producer and recycler Indorama added environmental legislation has contributed to uncompetitive energy and raw materials prices in Europe, which make other regions more attractive to international companies as an investment. Participants suggested combining regulations with protective measures such as extending the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) to include plastics, could help to ensure Europe's competitiveness.
Recycling to reduce emissions
Increasing recycling and the uptake of recyclates in plastic products is one of the most effective ways to reduce carbon emissions linked to plastic raw materials. But Recoup chairman Jim Armstrong highlighted the need to support the UK recycling industry. "We need infrastructure to convert the materials that we will collect, that is part of the circle. The UK recycling industry is really under pressure at the moment. The idea there's a whole queue of financial investors waiting to invest in UK recycling, that's just not true at the moment", he said.
The price of plastic waste bales in the UK has fallen incrementally throughout the year, amid slow demand for domestic and export sales and a drop in the value of Packaging Recovery Notices (PRNs), which recyclers generate by processing packaging waste and which are intended to contribute to investment.
And on the downstream side of the recycling industry, Biffa Polymers mothballed a 25,000t/yr mechanical recycling plant in northeast England in June owing to "extremely challenging market conditions", while Viridor announced in August it would not proceed with plans to build a chemical recycling plant in Sunderland, citing delays to UK legislation.
Robbie Staniforth from packaging compliance scheme Ecosurety noted a number of incoming measures that should help UK plastic recyclers, including extended producer responsibility (EPR) and a deposit return scheme (DRS) for PET bottles. But he said the UK's plastic packaging tax (PPT), which is intended to support demand for recyclates, needs improvement. Regarding PPT, Kinza Sutton said Plastipak had expected it to drive more use of recycled material, but in fact its recycled content had dropped by 5pc since 2022. "The plastics tax [has] driven cost increases, and we've seen the average recycled content come down. We were seeing high levels of 51pc or 100pc, we're seeing a lot less of that now, companies are just reverting back down to 30pc [the minimum threshold to avoid paying PPT]".
Engaging the customer
Customers may support more re-use and recycling, but it is the industry's responsibility to help them make the right choices and minimise the necessary sacrifice to convenience and the cost burden, delegates heard.
Gavin Ellis, co-founder of environmental organisation Hubbub, said research had shown consumers spend just two seconds on average deciding which bin to use for items of waste packaging, making clear labelling vital. A consistent approach between brands, outlets and collection systems is also important, he said.
James Bull, head of packaging at Tesco, said retailers need to change products carefully, with an awareness that people have grown to rely on convenience and may be resistant to changes such as a move to a more reuse-based system. And Andrew Murray from appliance manufacturer Beko said new regulations should take into account the financial capabilities of consumers. Many households already cannot afford essential appliances, he said, making any measures that would increase the cost of the cheapest models potentially problematic.
Despite the short-term challenges the industry is facing the sentiment at the event was optimistic for plastics recycling in the UK and Europe. Participants see the opportunity the industry has to lead consumers along the path to a more sustainable packaging supply chain model of reduced consumption and systems with more focus on reuse and recycling with the support of legalisation.
