November 21, 2025 15:13
Several European associations and companies from the plastics and recycling industries (listed alongside) have submitted an appeal to the Danish presidency of the Council of the European Union and to the European Commission, calling for urgent policy measures “to address the current market crisis and ensure the long-term competitiveness of Europe’s recycling sector, through new investments that will reinforce its foundations.”
This is not a generic call for action, but a request for specific measures, including:
According to the signatories, a strategic approach to the transition toward a circular plastics economy in Europe also requires “a bold and structured strategy” based on several pillars.
These include introducing binding obligations for the use of recycled plastics of European origin in certain products; protecting the market from unfair competition from non-EU countries by countering fraud related to recycled-content claims; and adopting targeted financial instruments to accelerate the uptake of sustainable solutions across the European plastics industry — including reallocating revenues from the EU plastics tax on non-recycled waste (Plastic Levy).
“It is essential to return to the founding objective of all legislation on recycling and the circular economy: recycling Europe’s waste and closing the loop. Without urgent action,” the appeal concludes, “Europe’s ambitious goal of doubling recycling capacity by 2030 will remain out of reach. Future investments in Europe will dry up, vital jobs throughout the entire value chain will be lost, and announced projects risk never materialising.”
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