High volumes of clothing sales in Europe mean more items are being discarded and faster. Soaring amounts of surplus product with low resale value is driving textile collectors and sorters to breaking point.
Zero Waste Europe (ZWE) has expressed concern about the Environmental Omnibus proposal released by the European Commission. While the environmental network acknowledges that reducing administrative burden can be beneficial in a limited number of cases, this broad simplification initiative risks sending the wrong signals when it comes to circularity.
Eroding vital protections will sideline people and nature, and leave Europe less competitive, less resilient and less sovereign, warns the EEB,
As Faerch's dedicated recycling division, Cirrec specializes in circular solutions for plastics. Its mission is to enable true circularity in food packaging by transforming post-consumer PET packaging back into new food-grade trays of the same high quality.
The competition has been running successfully for 7 years attracting outstanding and original entries from around the world.
The EEA published today its assessment of progress toward objectives set out under the 8th Environment Action Programme (EAP), which establishes the framework for EU environmental policy until 2030. Progress is assessed based on a set of 28 headline indicators and corresponding targets in areas such as climate change mitigation and adaptation, a regenerative circular economy, zero pollution and a toxic-free environment, biodiversity and ecosystems, and environmental and climate pressures related to EU production and consumption.
The Feedstock Innovation Center (FIC) will process waste plastics into feedstock. Once the facility is completed, SK Chemicals will secure a value chain that extends beyond the production of chemically recycled materials to encompass the sourcing of waste plastics.
Incorporating recycled plastic into food contact applications is necessary to meet upcoming targets and requires adherence to EU regulation, but for those outside the recycled polyethylene terephthalate (R-PET) market, or outside the EU, meeting those requirements will be a significant challenge.
The Heavy Picker uses AI-based computer vision and robotic precision to identify and sort valuable metals and minerals from bottom ash fractions that traditional systems often miss. Stone, inert, and hardcore materials pass through, while the system sorts remaining metals and unburnt fractions directly from the belt. By automating these complex tasks, the system enhances efficiency, reduces manual handling, and improves workplace safety.
In the process, the textile bales are first shredded and then pneumatically conveyed to the Hosokawa Alpine Rotoplex to be defibred. In the next step, a classifier separates the fibres into two fractions: clean fibres for recycling and contaminated textile waste that can be disposed of.
While the newly published Economic Security Doctrine and the RESourceEU Action Plan confirm the central role of recycling and secondary raw materials in securing Europe's industrial future, BIR cautions that several measures risk undermining the very resilience and competitiveness the EU seeks to protect.
The analysis forms part of a wider USD 10.1 trillion business opportunity associated with the adoption of nature-positive solutions across the private sector.
The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) states that the European Commission's new RESourceEU package could align mineral policy with defence objectives and weaken environmental and social safeguards.
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.
