The PET bottles collected and recycled in Europe in 2017 have reached 52%. According to the European PET bottle recycling organization. Europe collected 1.5 million tons plastic bottles in 2016. The recycled PET materials used in the manufacture of fiber tonnage increased, and the use for blow molding continues to increase, accounting for nearly 20% in 2016.
Exports to the Far East maintained 14% of the amount of PET polyester collected, but the export amount increased by as much as 36%. The European Packaging and Packaging Waste Guidelines require that most EU member states should recycle at least 22.5% of plastic packaging in 2017, with the goal of increasing the proportion of recycled or reused plastics from household sources to 50% by 2020.
It is reported that the amount of PET recycled from the UK has greatly exceeded the supply. According to statistics from the Waste and Resources Action Plan, the UK currently has a demand of about 60,000 tons a year, while the UK production will reach 50,000 tons a year by 2016. The UK built a 35,000 ton a year recyclable PET unit in eastern London and started production in 2016 to produce 9000 tons a year of food grade PET.
The Central China Recycling Company has a 15,000 ton a year hot-wash debris unit that was also commissioned at the end of 2017. The JFC recycling company also built a 9,000 tons a year hot-wash debris unit, which was commissioned at the end of 2017. The hot-washed chips themselves do not reach food-grade quality, but the chips can be processed into food-grade materials after hot washing.
According to the British Plastics Federation in early July 2016, in 2016, one-third of the UK’s expanded polystyrene packaging was recycled, which is 5,031 tons. The government’s recycling target for all plastics in 2017 is 25.5%.
The UK is making efforts for PET bottles recycling because it sees the potential of this material. PET material recycling in the the United Kingdom still has a long way to go.