European Plastic Recycling Industry Faces Survival Crisis, Urgent Measures Needed

According to Plastics Recyclers Europe, the European plastics recycling industry is facing an imminent collapse crisis. The surge in imports of low-cost recycled plastics has led to a decline in demand for domestically produced recycled plastics within the EU. Coupled with increasing economic pressures and cumbersome, redundant administrative procedures, more and more EU recycling companies are being forced to shut down. This phenomenon is causing a simultaneous decline in industry capacity and recycling capability, seriously threatening the survival foundation of this strategic sector.

By the end of 2025, it is expected that Europe will lose a significant number of recycling facilities, with a cumulative loss of nearly 1 million tons of recycling capacity since 2023. From January to July 2025 alone, the loss in capacity will almost match that of the entire year of 2024, and will be three times that of the same period in 2023. Although the industry had achieved rapid expansion in previous years, the 2025 forecast data indicates that net growth in the sector will stagnate, signaling a critical decline in the momentum of the EU’s transition to a circular economy. Among the countries most severely affected by this downward trend are the Netherlands, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

The impact of economic recession

The above data fully demonstrates that the economic recession is delivering a devastating blow to Europe’s plastics recycling industry. To boost domestic demand for recycled plastics in the EU and prevent more business closures, policymakers must take urgent action: implement trade and market protection mechanisms, ensure consistency in Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations, and strictly enforce third-party certification systems. In addition, unified and binding penalties should be established for non-compliant materials.

Time is of the essence: take immediate action.

In addition, a series of supporting measures need to be implemented to alleviate the economic pressure on recycling enterprises, such as providing channels for companies to access inexpensive clean energy and simplifying the administrative procedures for permit applications and renewals. At the same time, strengthening customs supervision and formulating targeted investment incentive policies are equally crucial to restoring the competitiveness of this industry.

The current moment has reached a critical point where action must be taken. If the European plastic recycling industry collapses, it will cause irreversible damage to the achievements made in environmental governance and technological innovation over the past decade, thereby endangering the attainment of EU climate targets and its long-term competitiveness.