Plastics

| In the light of the latest developments in the field of the EU circular economy and the approaching European strategy on plastics, the European Plastics Converters Association (EuPC) has launched a European survey on the current and future use of recycled plastics materials (RPM) in Europe’s plastics converting industry.

| Carbios has announced that it has taken a new step forward with the production of PET oligomers made out of terephthalic acid coming from its biorecycling process of PET plastic bottles.

| Following its successful launch in March this year, organisers of the Plastics Recycling Show (PRS) Europe have announced that the event will return to the RAI Amsterdam in The Netherlands on 24-25 April 2018.

| During the Gala Dinner of the Annual European Meeting of EuPC and ANAIP on 1 June 2017, the eight winners of the Best Polymer Producers Awards for Europe 2017 were announced. The Polymers for Europe Alliance congratulates the winners of this European-wide customer satisfaction survey which reflects their contribution to the plastics value chain.

| June 8th 2017 is #WorldOceanDay and ISWA is delighted to announce its intention to play a major role in the urgent microplastic emergency threatening our oceans with the launch of its new global initiative – a Task Force on Marine Litter.

| On the 1st and 2nd of June, the European Plastics Converters Association (EuPC) and the Spanish Plastics Association (ANAIP) staged together the EuPC Annual Meeting in Madrid. During the conference under the title A circular future with plastics, EuPC’s General Assembly passed two resolutions on the launch of new European industry platforms.

| Daniele Ferrari, CEO of Versalis (Eni), has been elected President of PlasticsEurope, succeeding Patrick Thomas, CEO of Covestro, who held this office since 2011.

| Taking the five- to 10-year view, it was possible that China would decide to stop importing plastic scrap. That was the worst-case scenario presented by the Executive President of the China Scrap Plastics Association - Dr Steve Wong- in light of the country’s National Sword initiative to prohibit imports of any material that could contain contaminants and therefore lead to environmental pollution.

| New developments in marker technologies for sorting plastic packaging should not be viewed as ‘the answer’ to increasing recycling rates, however they could be valuable in other ways leading to higher quality and value in recycling, suggests Axion Consulting.

| Around 120 representatives from 19 countries attended the 2nd International Forum "Agricultural Plastics – Potential for Recycling“, organised by RIGK.

| The PVC industry is making real progress towards sustainability and a positive contribution to the circular economy through a united industry approach, delegates heard at the 5th VinylPlus Sustainability Forum 2017 in Berlin, Germany.

| APK plans to set up recycling plants by 2025 together with strategic partners in Europe and South- East Asia in order to strengthen plastics recycling and to reduce global land pollution and marine litter.

| On 20 and 21 April, EuPC, the Trade Association of Plastics Converters in Europe held the Food Contact Plastics Seminar organized together with Polymer Comply Europe.

| Since Starlinger recycling technology presented its technology for odour reduction in post-consumer recycling in 2016, it continues to be in high demand: a customer already ordered the second recycling system equipped with it.