Organised in partnership with market intelligence firm ICIS, this year’s Petcore Europe Annual Conference brought together policymakers, industry leaders, and key stakeholders from across the PET value chain to discuss ongoing actions, market trends, and regulatory developments shaping the shift from a linear to a circular model.
Over two days in February, high-level talks highlighted the successes and challenges of moving towards full circularity. Delegates engaged in discussions on market evolutions, legislative impacts, industry perspectives, and the development of standards, certifications, and innovative recycling technologies.
Speakers emphasised the need for clear, actionable regulation to support the uptake of recycled materials and strengthen the competitiveness of European industries.
What was crystal clear is that collaboration between policymakers, enforcement authorities, and companies is essential to accelerate the transition to a sustainable, circular PET value chain.
Circularity as a strategy
Stefano Soro, head of the European Commission’s (EC’s) Green and Circular Economy Unit since 2021, told conference delegates that circularity is an economic and industrial strategy, not just an environmental goal.
He emphasised that policy action alone is not enough and that proper enforcement and the active involvement of national authorities are critical, particularly in the plastics sector.
Soro outlined several EU initiatives aimed at strengthening resource security and supporting circular markets. These include the Critical Raw Materials Act, REPowerEU, and the broader circular economy package, which focuses on streamlining regulations, removing internal market barriers, and supporting European manufacturing.
He also mentioned upcoming actions such as the Industrial Accelerator Act and RESourceEU initiatives, which are expected to complement existing measures.
“Circularity is an economic and industrial strategy,” Soro said, adding that “policymakers’ action is necessary, but it is not sufficient”, underscoring the need for industry participation as well.
He also announced plans to relaunch the Circular Plastics Alliance, a forum bringing together regulators, enforcement authorities, and industry stakeholders.
First launched by the EU in 2018 and comprising more than 300 stakeholders across the EU plastics value chain, the revamped alliance is intended to be a high-level operational forum, facilitating dedicated audits for recycled materials and coordinating actions between Member States.
According to Soro, it will continue to conduct industry-led analysis of the EU plastics sector, identify priority areas for trade measures, support the development of new customs codes for recycled polymers, and provide guidance for market surveillance activities.
Through these measures, the EC aims to accelerate the uptake of secondary raw materials and strengthen Europe’s position as a sustainable and competitive manufacturing hub. These actions also respond to Europe’s limited natural resources and the need to maintain economic and financial sustainability alongside environmental goals.
Calculating recycling performance
While the EC sets the policy framework for circularity, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) – part of its science and knowledge service – is developing the technical methodology to measure how well packaging meets these goals.
Leonidas Milios, scientific project officer at the JRC, explained that the centre’s work focuses on developing methodologies to assess the recyclability of packaging and the use of secondary raw materials under EU regulations.
The methodology applies a grading system from A to C, with A and B representing fully recyclable packaging and C reflecting the minimum standard for recyclability under the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
Packaging below this standard is considered technically challenging to recycle. The methodology also accounts for complex packaging components and practical constraints in recycling technologies and sorting systems.
Circularity requires independent, evidence-based knowledge to support policy, with stakeholder input playing a key role. “We are continuously gathering technical data from all relevant stakeholders, which are actually adding value to our work and make it more valid, more solid and more substantial,” he added.
A draft proposal is expected by December, with the final methodology published in April 2027, providing opportunities for stakeholder input throughout the process. The JRC is also considering an online tool to simplify application of the methodology, ensuring it is practical and accessible for both industry and regulators.
Enhancing sustainability
Wolfgang Trunk, team leader for plastics and packaging at the EC’s Directorate-General for Environment, used the conference to outline how his team is working to enhance sustainability across the EU plastics value chain while maintaining competitiveness.
He explained that the focus of the so-called competitive circular economy is not only on environmental outcomes but also on ensuring that European industries can thrive under evolving regulations.
Trunk highlighted the Circular Economy Winter Package, which was created just before Christmas 2025, and includes concrete measures such as the implementing act under the Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD).
This legislation provides a framework for chemical recycling and complements ongoing efforts to strengthen mechanical recycling standards.
He also noted the importance of establishing transregional circularity hubs within the EU to support cross-border recycling and improve coordination across Member States.
Training authorities, harmonising analytical methods, and monitoring imported plastics are essential to ensure EU compliance, Trunk claimed.
He also pointed to upcoming legislative milestones, including three specific acts: rules for chemically recycled PET content under the SUPD, the EU-wide end-of-waste criteria for plastics, and amendments to Regulation (EU) 2022/1616 on recycled plastics for food contact, as part of a broader strategic approach to circularity.
Stakeholder engagement is central, Trunk stressed, with experts closely involved in shaping policy. Expert groups provide critical input for the development of secondary legislation. “We’re in an evolutionary process,” he added.
“What’s happened in the past year with the single-use plastics chemical recycling act feeds into the next steps for a packaging recycled content act.”
He concluded by underlining the EU’s strategic goals: maintaining resource efficiency, enforcing the waste hierarchy, and ensuring that regulation supports a competitive and resilient plastics sector.
Throughout, Trunk emphasised that balancing detailed legislation with the practical realities of industry is key to achieving a successful circular economy.
Recycling market trends
Helen McGeough, global team lead for plastics recycling at ICIS, and Matt Tudball, the company’s senior editor for recycling, outlined current market dynamics for PET and rPET in Europe.
While the gap between virgin and rPET prices has narrowed over the past year, it remains large enough that demand for rPET has not fully recovered.
McGeough explained that overall demand for PET has been weak since the 2023 cost-of-living crisis. Virgin producers have closed capacities due to low sales, while rPET has seen a similar downward trend, she added. The market currently has an unusual abundance of recycled feedstock bales, flakes, and pellets, leaving the sector waiting for any signs of demand improvement.
The main constraint on scaling up high-quality rPET is the prolonged low demand, which limits investment across the recycling chain. “Without demand, the end-market for recyclers’ materials has nowhere to go, which means they are not making money to invest and expand,” McGeough said.
This lack of investment is particularly significant for high-quality material suitable for food-contact applications, which requires robust collection and sorting infrastructure. Deposit return schemes are expected to help, but their impact will take time to reach the market.
Regarding the impact of EU regulations such as the PPWR and recycled content targets, these measures have so far had limited influence on actual buying behaviour, Tudball noted.
“The regulation is still quite a way away,” he said. “Brands aren’t necessarily increasing recycled content this year compared with last, despite the targets in the directives.”
Investment in recycling infrastructure is spread across Europe, with some focused on the eastern and northern regions. Projects include collection systems and sorting technologies, though closures of individual plants have occurred alongside new capacity development.
On priorities for the industry, feedstock supply is critical. “It’s all about the bales,” McGeough explained. “They are keeping costs high.”
Greater discussion and coordination around bale pricing, particularly as deposit return schemes are implemented, could help ensure the recycling sector remains viable in the long term.
Looking ahead, regulatory clarity is considered crucial. The industry needs clarity on what is permissible under EU rules to build investment confidence and support initiatives like chemical recycling.
As McGeough noted: “There’s still a lot of uncertainty, but we need clarity to push the industry forward and meet targets, especially for rPET.”
