Plastics can accelerate their contribution to the European Circular Economy objectives of reduced greenhouse gas emissions, higher resource effciency and job creation, according to a new report from EuPC and 4 other partners.

‘Plastics Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda in a Circular Economy’ was developed in cooperation with SusChem, the European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry; CEFIC, the European Chemical Industry Council; PlasticsEurope; and ECP4, the European Composites, Plastics and Polymer Processing Platform.

The report presents a shared vision, demonstrates how collaboration within the plastic value chain will be a driving force for change, and outlines the future research needs required to fulfil the objectives of the European Plastic Strategy. The technology solutions described are part of an integral approach to make the entire plastics production more circular.

To achieve an overall increased circularity, the report identified a number of key factors:

• Design materials with enhanced separation and recycling properties,

• Design articles/products to encourage reuse,

• Develop repair solutions that extend the lifetime of plastic articles,

• Innovate advanced recycling technologies to increase the value retrieved from plastic waste,

• Incorporate alternative feedstocks in the production of plastics - feedstocks that take waste or by-products from other sectors and processes, such as biological feedstock from the agricultural industry, carbon-based feedstock from the chemical industry and chemical and secondary plastics from the plastic industry.

You can download the report by clicking on the image below or visiting EuPC's website.

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