Plastic recycling: "The status quo is untenable, every stakeholder must take action" (M. Lefèvre)

“Only 26% of plastic packaging is recycled in France, well below the European target of 50%. We cannot be satisfied with the current situation, which results in France paying €1.5bn each year to the EU to cover the gap. Every stakeholder in the sector must take action,” declared Mathieu Lefèvre, French Minister for Ecological Transition, on 19/05.

He was speaking during the “circular economy” segment of the fifth meeting of the Conseil de Planification Ecologique, chaired by Emmanuel Macron and held at the REuse Economy exhibition in Paris.

“Only 55% of plastic bottles are recycled, compared with an EU target of 77% today and 90% by 2029. We need to scale up and activate several levers, starting with reducing our dependence on plastic at source through less unnecessary packaging,” he added.

The Minister said that two structural issues were discussed during the meeting. The first concerns the deposit return scheme for recycling, which will become mandatory from 01/01/2029 under the European Packaging Regulation.

“In order to anticipate this deadline, we will shortly bring together…