Europe PET recovery moves towards 50% as Far East exports fall

European PET collection is set to hit 50% after rates rose across the continent in 2009, according to new figures.

Petcore, the European body that represents PET recycling, said that the overall collection rate had risen to 48.4% in 2009, up from 46% in 2008.

Collections of PET bottles rose by more than 8% to 1.4m tonnes, the organisation said.

The Brussels-based organisation estimated there was currently mechanical capacity to recycle around 1.6m tonnes of PET bottles annually; just over the 1.4m tonnes that was collected in 2009.

However, the figures also showed that reusable PET represented only 75% of the total weight collected, with caps and labels making up a growing proportion due to lightweighting initiatives for the bottles themselves.

Petcore chairman Roberto Bertaggia said: “For the collection of PET bottles in Europe to increase by more than 8% is such difficult economic conditions is a real achievement.”

In terms of end markets, the figures showed that exports to the Far East had fallen slightly to 16% of all collected PET.

Sales of flake to the PET sheet market represented 27% of usage, while 22% went to blowmoulding and 7% went to strapping applications.