VinylPlus, the European PVC industry's sustainability programme, has been a pioneer for the circular economy since its inception in 2000. From the beginning, the industry has supported the European Commission's call to further promote the recycling of plastics. It has also committed to recycling at least 900,000 tonnes of PVC per year by 2025, which is a significant contribution to the Commission's overall target of 10 million tonnes for the plastics industry. Looking ahead, VinylPlus has also committed to recycle at least 1 million tonnes of PVC per year by 2030.
"For almost 20 years, VinylPlus has been creating the conditions for a circular economy by helping the industry continuously improve the sustainability of PVC. As our programme covers the entire value chain - PVC producers, additive manufacturers, converters and recyclers - we were able to respond early to the Commission's call for a voluntary commitment from the plastics industry. We welcome this action, which underlines the foresight of VinylPlus in implementing its first Voluntary Commitment," says Brigitte Dero, General Manager of VinylPlus.
Thanks to VinylPlus' special role in involving the entire value chain, the sustainability programme has managed to recycle more than 4 million tonnes of PVC since 2000.
PVC is made from salt and oil or natural gas and is one of the most widely used plastics in the world with a wide range of applications including window frames, flooring, pipes, cables, packaging, sports equipment, furniture and medical devices.
Meeting the targets set is essential for the success of VinylPlus. Recycled volumes are independently verified and reported to the VinylPlus Monitoring Committee, which is composed of representatives from the European Commission, the European Parliament, consumer organisations, trade unions, academia and industry.