Michael Brunn

Global production capacity for biobased plastics is expected to increase from 2.31 million tonnes in 2025 to around 4.69 million tonnes by 2030. Biobased plastics currently account for approximately 0.5% of the global annual plastics production of 431 million tonnes. The projected growth is driven by increasing market demand and advances in material performance and applications.

The initiative builds on the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and provides financing instruments and measures to limit geopolitical and price risks, promote European and international projects and diversify supply chains with partner countries.

The four-year project is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Climate Policy and Green Growth. Industrial scaling is planned from 2030 in line with the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).

The QT-AIT.Circularity provides a fast and cost-efficient method to simulate the impact of multiple mechanical recycling loops on PET recyclate quality. The test supports early-stage evaluation of packaging concepts and complements EPBP's existing tools for assessing PET bottle circularity.

Despite economic uncertainties and differing regulatory environments, investment in green technologies continues to expand. According to the report, the green economy is among the fastest growing global sectors, behind the technology industry. The study highlights advantages for companies that generate revenues from green products and services.

Demand for lithium-ion batteries continues to rise across household appliances, electric mobility and stationary storage systems. These sectors consume increasing volumes of critical raw materials, while manufacturing know-how and large parts of the value chain remain concentrated in Asia. According to Accurec, vertically integrated recycling processes in Asia are supported by state funding and operate under structural cost advantages, making them difficult to replicate within European cost environments.

The sorter uses hyperspectral imaging (HSI) instead of near-infrared technology. The HSI camera records high-resolution images and provides detailed information on material characteristics. All sensor data - including NIR, colour, 3D and metal detection - is processed via a sensor-fusion concept. The raw data is evaluated directly without additional interfaces, enabling loss-free data transfer to the detection algorithm, which is trained on extensive datasets.

For non-ferrous recyclers, CMR Green serves as a strong example of how reliable sorting performance can be achieved even under demanding Indian conditions such as high temperatures, dust, heterogeneous material streams and fluctuating quality. The company's latest success is built on advanced sensor-based sorting systems from Steinert, which deliver precise material separation and high recovery rates.

Aimed at those metal recyclers who shred and process end-of-life vehicles, household appliances and other metal wastes, it concerns the landfilling of metal shredder residue (MSR).

Of this, 35 million tons, or 92 percent, was used as building materials and fertilizers, as well as in other applications. This prevented the extraction of 40 million tons of natural rock and the emission of 11,4 million tons of CO2 across Europe. Between 2000 and 2024, this will amount to a total of 1.21 billion tons of natural rock and 319 million tons of CO2.