Innovative Recycling Processes for Complex Waste Streams | Plastics Europe Panel at IFAT 2024
At IFAT, the world's largest recycling trade fair, plastics producers, recyclers, start-ups, NGOs, and associations came together to discuss solutions for recycling complex plastic waste.
At the PlasticsEurope Deutschland e. V. panel on Friday, May 17, the significant challenges faced today were once again highlighted. Globally, only about 10 percent of all plastics have been recycled to date. In Germany, about a third of all plastics are recycled. This is because many types of plastic waste cannot be collected and processed separately, or can only be processed at great expense. Consequently, many plastics end up being incinerated at the end of their useful life. However, several new approaches and recycling processes were presented at IFAT 2024 that aim to address this issue.
Speakers:
👉 Nicola Lelli, Senior Advisor, Design & Market Solutions, Alliance to End Plastic Waste
👉 Johanna Wiechen, Policy Advisor - Industrial Transformation and Circular Economy, Germanwatch e.V.
👉 Thomas Dr Probst, Senior Advisor, Federal Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Waste Disposal (bvse Bundesverband Sekundärrohstoffe und Entsorgung)
👉 Johannes Laier, Chief Financial Officer & Co-Founder WeSort.AI GmbH
👉 Henning Schmidt, Head of Liaison Office Berlin, PlasticsEurope Deutschland e. V.
“We need a mix of technologies,” explained Alexander Kronimus, Managing Director of Plastics Europe. “Circular product design, digital product passports, AI-supported sorting technologies, and new additives that facilitate mechanical recycling can open up completely new waste streams. Additionally, chemical recycling processes enable the recycling of many plastics that previously ended up in waste incineration plants.”