Low prices for virgin plastic are a global threat to the use of recycled plastic., - The BIR plastics committee. The Bureau for International Recycling (BIR) met at the convention in Amsterdam on 24 May. Delegates spoke of the need for regulation to encourage plastics recycling. The market was currently under pressure amid rapidly declining demand for recycled materials, said the plastics committee chairman, Henk Alssema of Netherlands-based Vita Plastics. And he indicated that many companies which had been using recycled feedstock were using the opportunity afforded by low prime prices to abandon the recycled option. Former BIR plastics committee chairman, Surendra Patawari Borad of Gemini Corporation NV in Belgium, expressed concern that, despite all the focus on the subject, the plastics recycling rate “is in single digits – and it’s coming down”. She also called for encouragement of mechanical recycling despite the recent proliferation of chemical recycling ventures. Having questioned the sustainability credentials of chemical recycling when compared to the mechanical alternative, she expressed concern that these ventures were “disturbing the markets” in their pursuit of material. Mr Patawari Borad cast doubt on the viability of many chemical recycling projects, with Ms Houghton adding: “I’m still to be convinced it will actually work on a large scale.” The environmental credentials of chemical recycling had been a topic of recent debate at the United Nations Basel Convention and had been earmarked for further discussion once more data were available. #circulareconomy #circulareconomynews #recycle