Resource scarcity and import dependency present the German economy with significant challenges. A stronger circular economy could provide a remedy here by recovering valuable materials and promoting raw material independence. The planned amendment to the Circular Economy Act addresses precisely this issue and is assessed by various stakeholders as setting a new direction.
With the planned amendment to the Circular Economy Act, the federal government aims to strengthen recycling and waste prevention. For the first time, raw material sovereignty and security of supply are also to be expressly anchored in the law. In a recent statement, the TÜV Association welcomes this stronger strategic orientation of the circular economy. However, from the association's perspective, clear quality requirements, reliable certificates and independent inspections are needed so that recovered raw materials can be reliably reused.
„A functioning circular economy is increasingly becoming a matter of raw material security and the resilience of our entire economy. However, recycled raw materials and materials can only become established if companies can rely on their quality. Independent testing creates this trust. It ensures that the same standards apply to all market participants.“
Juliane Petrich, Policy and Sustainability Officer at the TÜV Association
Technologically neutral regulations and independent inspections
The amendment to the Circular Economy Act is intended to explicitly classify material and chemical processes as forms of recycling. The TÜV Association is speaking out against the favouring of individual technologies and is calling for uniform European rules. The legal framework should remain technologically open and enable both established and new, suitable recycling processes. Manufacturer information on longevity, repairability and recyclability must be verifiable in order to facilitate implementation and monitor compliance with regulations.
Avoid red tape, utilise existing structures
A central concern of the TÜV-Verband is to avoid additional bureaucracy and to utilise existing testing and certification structures. The involvement of industry, federal states, municipal waste management companies and independent experts in shaping the reform is crucial. The use of digital procedures and existing systems can limit the effort for all parties involved.
High-grade recycling and public demand
The BVSE Federal Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Waste Management welcomes the stronger focus on raw material sovereignty and security of supply. Managing Director Eric Rehbock demands that high-quality mechanical recycling processes should be given priority.
„Chemical recycling can be an important addition. But it should be used where mechanical recycling reaches its limits - and not where high-quality mechanical recycling processes are already working.“
Eric Rehbock, BVSE Managing Director
BVSE-Recycling Germany points out that mechanical recycling currently makes a much greater contribution to the actual recycling of plastics. According to the data used in the BVSE statement, mechanical recycling accounted for 35 percent of post-consumer plastic waste in Germany in 2023, while chemical recycling achieved a share of merely 0.1 percent.
The association emphasises the importance of strong public demand for recycled products in order to create economic incentives for investment.
Public procurement as a lead market
At least as crucial as the question of recycling processes is the question for the bvse as to whether recycled products ultimately find a market. After all, without stable demand, companies lack the economic prerequisites for further investment in sorting, processing and recycling capacities. Public procurement plays a decisive role here. The bvse sees the federal government, federal states and municipalities as potential lead markets for recycled products. The preferential use of quality-assured recycled products should be regulated on a mandatory basis in order to create stable sales markets.
Long-term strengthening of Germany as a recycling hub
The circular economy in Germany can only be strengthened through a combination of ambitious targets and economic conditions. The BVSE emphasises that the recycling industry has already invested in modern plants and provides quality-assured secondary raw materials. Targeted support for these structures is necessary to increase raw material sovereignty and become more independent of primary raw materials.
Sources: TÜV-Verband; BVSE
