The Circular Future @FutureCircular

SCS today announces the successful demonstration of the mechanical recycling of XPS food trays in partnership with @KronesAG and @TomraGroup. A successful test run on Krones' pilot process for foamed polystyrene confirms feasibility, industrial efficiency and recyclate quality of the mechanical recycling of XPS food trays. Furthermore, SCS has defined a circular design guideline for XPS food trays, further promoting their recycling. Full SCS press release: bit.ly/4dnS8SK

Further solutions for PS recycling: At the @NPEplasticsshow in Orlando, Forida, next week, @StarlingerCo will present its super-cleaning and odour reduction solutions for the most popular consumer packaging materials, including PS. Starlinger says that it realises its vision “food-grade without compromise” with a combination of proven post-consumer pelletising with a new melt phase decontamination technology and downstream pellet flushing. With the new technology, the material is upgraded and thus suitable for use in high-grade applications including direct food-contact packaging. The @US_FDA has already issued 29 favourable opinions on the suitability of post-consumer recycled PS (rPS) to be used in food-contact articles (FCM), in the form of so-called no objection letters (NOLs) to various applicants. Since October 2022, EU law has allowed the use of rPS FCM produced with so-called novel technologies under stringent conditions, including a notification – also prior to an @EFSA_EU opinion. Extensive tests and studies have confirmed the safety of mechanically recycled post-consumer PS. Multiple consortia and individual developers have notified rPS technologies, following those EU rules. This goes hand in hand with the further increasing separate collection, sorting and recycling of PS in practice and at scale (please see our previous posts). Starlinger’s announcement: bit.ly/3QnFMQR NPE2024: bit.ly/44kcrwg List of US FDA NOLs on rPS: bit.ly/3UnEWG7 Two examples of peer-reviewed studies confirming the safety of rPS: bit.ly/3LAGVly and bit.ly/3RzKrk2 #NPE2024 #circulareconomy

Another contribution from our member BEWI to circularity in all parts of the styrenics value chain. It meets the demand for sustainable material, amid further increasing collection, sorting and recycling of all forms of PS across Europe, including EPS: bewi.com/press-releases…

After a busy year, our newsletter features a selection of actions taken by our value chain in 2023 to further drive forward the circular economy for styrenics. We also take this opportunity to wish you well for the festive season and a happy, healthy and prosperous 2024! bit.ly/48uoWpU

1st EU rules on calculating recycled content rely on the new regime for safe recycled plastic food contact material. Our value chain is already implementing that regime. Furthermore, @EU_Commission is to propose rules for chemical recycling by March. Links: bit.ly/48u6lu3 and bit.ly/3qN735g

The sorting of PS can be efficient & precise, and it is further improving across Europe, also with significant capacity upgrades, e.g. 200Kt in Sweden and 100Kt by ARA and Green Dot in Austria. Links: bit.ly/3NsQHHx, bit.ly/481GTfE & bit.ly/3NwvI6O

Report for @GermanEnvAgency: 48.4% plastic packaging recycling rate in 2021, just shy of the EU target for 2025. Post-sorting recycling efficiency of PS household packaging on par with e.g. PP (75%); for EPS even 87.5%. bit.ly/3GNnqU1

Today, over 100 EU and national associations from the #packaging value chain express their concerns for the risks of #singlemarket fragmentation in the upcoming #PPWR and call for the adoption of a workable legislative framework. Read the statement here: shorturl.at/yGLW8

Even more high-quality polystyrene recycling is coming across the EU, e.g. a new 40Kt plant in Krefeld, Germany. SCS members @Styrolution, @TOMRA and their local partner will mechanically recycle post-consumer PS waste to safe food contact material from mid-2025. bit.ly/41faIHe

Styrenics Circular Solutions @SCS4Circularity

3 years ago

Plastic household packaging exceeds the national 'mechanical recycling' target of 63%, according to @GermanEnvAgency (UBA). This is also true for PS, with 67% of it sent to recycling, in total even 42% more year-on-year. Joint announcement by UBA & ZSVR: bit.ly/46M70Gi;

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SCS Secretary General Jens Kathmann looks forward to presenting on 'Circular Polystyrene – from vision to reality' @RecyclersEU / PRE’s Annual Meeting in Cascais, Portugal, this week. plasticsrecyclers.eu/plastics-recyc…

Congratulations to Swedish Plastic Recycling for opening Site Zero today! It will provide 200Kt capacity to sort all household plastic packaging waste for recycling, including polystyrene and EPS. A leap forward for the circular economy. bit.ly/3QO6dQk

PS packaging is increasingly collected, sorted & recycled across Europe, e.g. 67% of it in Germany. Meanwhile, our Canadian member @Polystyvert will commercialise dissolution to recycle PS waste even where it is more challenging. Article: bit.ly/40bG8xA

Steve Harrington, @Styrolution: Brand owners & customers already eager for long-term contracts. Commercial scale PS recycling investment will lead to growing PS market share & reduction in packaging taxes & licence fees in countries with such frameworks. bit.ly/3MoxGFq

According to @TOMRA, PS is proven to be one of the best sortable plastics in the waste stream, 1 of only 2 polymers achieving food-contact qualities with mechanical recycling. PS retains inherent properties at virgin quality levels after many MR cycles. bit.ly/3MoxGFq

Congrats also to @FostPlusNL, @IndaverBE and user @ColruytGroup for extending the recycling of PS as well as XPS packaging further, with -65Kt depolymerisation (by 2027), one of the sustainable options to produce safe recycled PS for food packaging. tinyurl.com/7bzu6tzp

Fost Plus Belgique @fostplusfr

3 years ago

Nous sommes fiers d’annoncer notre collaboration avec Indaver et son usine Plastics2Chemicals pour le #recyclage chimique des pots de yaourt et barquettes en polystyrène (PS) et polystyrène extrudé (XPS) du sac bleu. fostplus.be/fr/blog/fost-p…

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Congratulations to Gneuss on 40 years focus on recycling, from OWL around the globe. This includes a favourable opinion on the suitability of a PS recycling process for food contact (NOL) from the US FDA (no. 297) bit.ly/3tWf4q0

Jens Kathmann, Secretary General of SCS, will speak on 'Circular Polystyrene - from vision to reality' at the Conformity of Food Packaging 2023 conference hosted by German Industry Association IVLV & Fraunhofer IVV in Freising, Germany. #recycling #circulareconomy #polystyrene