Competitiveness is emerging as the defining challenge of the current EU mandate. How can policymakers bolster Europe’s economic and industrial strength while advancing sustainability and circularity? This pressing question is central to numerous sectors, but none more so than plastics and plastic recycling.
Plastics are indispensable to the European economy, with applications ranging from food preservation to automotive manufacturing. Yet their environmental impact is undeniable. Transitioning to a circular plastics sector is critical to Europe’s circularity agenda. While Europe has been a global leader in plastics recycling, with a recycled content rate twice the global average, recent data indicates progress is stalling.
This challenge was the focus of a high-level event at the European Parliament, hosted by MEP Biljana Borzan. The gathering brought together policymakers, industry leaders, and Commission officials to explore ways to safeguard the plastics and recycling industries while fostering innovation to reduce emissions and waste. “European leadership on circularity is not just a matter of environmental stewardship – but one of economic necessity,” MEP Borzan emphasised.
European leadership on circularity is not just a matter of environmental stewardship – but one of economic necessity
“To remain competitive, without relying heavily on conventional plastics, we must embrace innovation, invest in alternatives, and make sustainability the core of our industrial strategy. Europe can and must lead the way to developing biobased and biodegradable materials in our plastics, in our re-use systems and fostering a culture of circularity. This transformation is not about rejecting plastics outright, but what about finding smarter, more sustainable solutions.”
Europe’s plastics sector at a crossroads
Industry experts outlined the growing threats to Europe’s plastics and plastics recycling industries. Sophie Sicard-Lemaire, Deputy Director for Sustainable Development at Paprec, painted a sobering picture of the current landscape. While Europe leads globally in recycled content and boasts a pioneering regulatory framework, momentum is waning and the European industry is facing “huge” competition from both virgin and recycled plastics imported from overseas.
The European plastics industry has, she said, been the global “frontrunner” on sustainable practices, and the level of recycled content in European plastic had reached 14% - twice the global average. “This is an achievement, we have to congratulate ourselves,” she said. “But it is still only at 14% - there is a long way to go for full plastic circularity.”
She explained that until recently Europe had witnessed “a very impressive collective momentum on developing circularity for plastics,” thanks to initiatives like the Circular Plastics Alliance, a voluntary commitment of the industry. “There was a massive development of recycling infrastructure in Europe. In five years we doubled the recycling capacity of Europe.”
But in recent years, she added, “we are losing this momentum”. “Demand is decreasing. Investment is decreasing. Imports are increasing. We are facing a huge competition both from virgin and recycled plastics imported into Europe. And investment in infrastructure is slowing. So there are a lot of a lot of challenges ahead.”
This sentiment was echoed by Tony Nawar, Vice President, Sustainability, Strategy, and Innovation at Berry, who highlighted the economic pressures on recyclers. “It’s an extremely tough time for recyclers,” he said, noting that a number of recyclers in the EU have “gone out of business”. Depressed prices for virgin materials, particularly from producers from the Asia-Pacific and the US, who benefit from lower energy costs, have made it increasingly difficult for European producers to compete. “Time is pressing for us to address the industrial challenge that we have,” he said, expressing his hopes that the proposed Circular Economy Act would address some of these concerns and take action to level the playing field.
Nawar added that the EU’s industry was ready to innovate to increase sustainability, pointing out that Europe had invented plastics and “led the invention of this material that basically was a revolution”. “We are innovating. But the industry as a whole is at risk from imports, and collectively from the inflationary energy environment and macroeconomic conditions. That needs to change.”
We stand at the forefront of the global movement towards a circular economy – but our leadership is reflected in our ability to implement it
MEP Borzan said that maintaining Europe’s global leadership on sustainability will require two things – innovation, and genuine partnership between policymakers and industry.
“We stand at the forefront of the global movement towards a circular economy – but our leadership is reflected in our ability to implement it,” she said. “If we are to succeed, the relationship between the plastics industry and policymakers must be one of genuine partnership. We need clear consistent and efficient regulations that give businesses the confidence to invest in sustainable practices, and that that puts public good at the heart. This is not about compromise, this is about alignment with a shared vision of the Europe that thrives without costing the earth.”
What should that framework look like? Pieter Smeets, Sustainability manager at INEOS Inovyn, agreed said it must involve an element of “carrot and stick”, including clear targets, which he said are essential to incentivise investment in infrastructure.
“When you look at plastic recycling, mechanical recycling is great, and it has the lowest impact. But not all applications can be mechanically recycled. We alo need additional technologies to do advanced recycling, chemical recycling, pyrolysis and all these all these kind of things. Unfortunately, these are a lot more expensive than virgin polymers. And so strong good targets will be critical to create the market, and to make sure that there's uptake.
“But at the same time we need carrots, because the industry will need to make big investments. And at moment, the competitive situation in Europe is very difficult.”
Céline Domecq, the Director of Public Affairs and Head of Office at Volvo Cars EU, echoed the call for clear mandatory targets – but insisted that if Europe is to remain competitive, these targets must be introduced in a “pragmatic” way. “Setting mandatory targets for recycled content in plastics is something that you need because it creates certainty for the plastic industry, for the recyclers. They know there will be a market so they will invest,” she said. “But we need to be pragmatic. What we're asking for is something which is realistic and feasible,” she added, noting that targets should be “phased in”, while Europe continues to build its recycling infrastructure.
The panel all also agreed that it was essential to protect the European industry from being undercut by cheaper, and potentially less sustainable, plastic imports.
“We cannot decarbonize or in the case of plastics, de-fossilise, by exporting emissions, exporting polluting products, exporting jobs. Because A, we don't do the planet any favours. And B, we impoverish ourselves. We hit hard our most vulnerable population, our most vulnerable regions,” said Stefano Soros, the Head of Unit for Net Zero Industries, Sustainable and Circular Products at DG GROW.
He added that while it is vital to “have a sound, robust regulatory framework”, it was equally important to ensure it was enforced. “Market surveillance is key. We cannot draw and implement rules for sustainability that we apply only to our businesses, whereas those outside Europe get a pass. It's uninteresting, it’s not sexy, it's expensive, time consuming, but it's crucial.”
Smeets agreed it was vital to find a way to enforce those targets also for imports. “Otherwise, if you can import a car without recycled content, then you don't only hurt the automotive industry, but also the plastic industry.”