Association (Assorimap) stated on November 9 that due to competition from low-cost virgin plastics produced in Asia, the sales of recycled plastics in Italy will decrease by 30% in 2023.

Walter Regis, the Chairman of Assorimap, told Ansa reporters that due to the fall in oil prices and business innovation, the domestic plastic recycling industry in Italy has lost out to manufacturers of virgin products.

Incompletely surveyed, Italy has 60 companies engaged in the plastic recycling industry, with a total of 3,000 employees and a turnover exceeding 1 billion euros.

Not only in Italy, but the entire European recycled plastics market is extremely unstable in 2023. The European Plastics Recyclers Association (PRE) reported that since the beginning of the year, prices of recycled materials have dropped by up to 50%. Simultaneously, there has been a significant increase in imports of low-cost materials from outside the European Union. Without urgent measures to alleviate the pressure on recyclers, Europe may struggle to achieve its legally binding and newly proposed recycling and circular economy targets.

Ton Emans, President of PRE, commented, "The future of the recycling industry is under threat, and immediate mandatory measures need to be taken to avoid the closure of recycling plants across Europe. Halting recycling activities will have a cascading effect on employment, the overall economy, and the environment in Europe."

The market decline applies to all recycled plastics, with PET being particularly affected. From the second quarter of 2022 to the second quarter of 2023, EU PET imports increased by 20%, leading to subdued demand for EU rPET. PRE anticipates a 10% reduction in the quantity of rPET during the same period