Despite a record recycling rate of 70 per cent for plastic packaging, the BDE sees an urgent need to reform the Packaging Act. According to the association, a lack of investment security, weak markets for recyclates and insufficient regulatory incentives are jeopardising the circular economy.
The latest figures from the ZSVR and UBA clearly show that packaging recycling in Germany is working and has made measurable progress in recent years. With a material recycling rate of around 70 per cent, plastic packaging in particular has reached an all-time high. For the BDE Federal Association of the German Waste, Water and Recycling Industry, this is measurable progress - but by no means a sign of the all-clear. According to Deputy Managing Director Dr Andreas Bruckschen, this success is primarily due to the industry's high level of investment in modern sorting and recycling facilities as well as technological innovations along the value chain.
Structural weaknesses in the system
Nevertheless, data from the ZSVR and UBA also shows that the current Packaging Act (VerpackG) is reaching its limits. In Germany, around 2.63 million tonnes of lightweight packaging are collected every year and processed in 43 highly automated facilities with sorting rates of over 95%. At the same time, however, recovery and recycling capacities are declining - especially for glass and composite materials. The reasons for this include high energy costs, plant closures and a lack of economic prospects.
From the BDE's point of view, the Packaging Act suffers from a fundamental design flaw: it relies unilaterally on quotas without sufficiently safeguarding investments in infrastructure, market development or design-for-recycling. Recyclable packaging remains a voluntary option - despite the political will. At the same time, high-quality recyclates are barely competitive on the market compared to primary raw materials. The lack of economic attractiveness jeopardises the recycling infrastructure in the long term.
Packaging design as the key
The BDE shares the assessment of the Central Agency Packaging Register (ZSVR) and the Federal Environment Agency that recyclability is largely dependent on packaging design. However, even the most modern systems cannot compensate for poor design decisions. The association is therefore calling for stronger legal incentives for recycling-friendly design - for example by further developing Section 21 of the German Packaging Act (VerpackG), which has hardly been effective to date.
The BDE is particularly critical of the upcoming transposition of the EU Packaging Regulation (PPWR) into German law. According to the association, the national organisation of the German Packaging Act will result in massive additional burdens for industry and trade: a significant increase in bureaucracy, new safety obligations, excessive recycling quotas and unclear transitional regulations could lead to underfunding of the systems. The association is particularly critical of the planned organisation for reduction and prevention measures, which would cost around 89 million euros a year.
What is needed now
In order to effectively implement the European PPWR, the BDE is calling for reliable investment conditions, functioning recyclate markets, binding design-for-recycling requirements and regulation with a sense of economic reality. Only in this way can the waste management and recycling industry in Germany continue to work efficiently - and the goal of a functioning circular economy be achieved in the long term.
Source: BDE
