EUROPE SET A NEW RECORD FOR CANS RECYCLED IN 2019

Good data for the improvement of the environment. Increased consumption in 2019 has led to a record 36.5 billion cans recycled, or 488,000 tonnes of aluminium, saving 4 million tonnes of CO₂. This is according to a new report from Metal Packaging Europe and European Aluminium which reveals that the overall recycling rate for aluminium beverage cans in the European Union, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland remained stable in 2019 at 76% (75.8%).

The aforementioned report confirms that with the growing consumption of cans, the total amount of aluminum recycled from cans reached a record level of 488,000 tons and represents a total saving of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions of 4 million tons of CO₂.

“With an increasing demand for fully circular packaging systems, the aluminium beverage can, which is made from an endlessly recyclable material, is the ideal alternative to less sustainable packaging options,” highlights Léonie Knox-Peebles, CEO of Metal Packaging Europe. “We now need to work together to ensure that even more used cans are disposed of and recycled correctly so that we reach our ambitious 2030 target. We are confident that the credentials highlighted in our Metal Recycles Forever logo will encourage consumers to do just that,” he adds.

Maarten Labberton, Head of EuropeanAluminium’s Packaging Group, emphasises that “we would like to see more countries moving towards modern, well-designed deposit return systems, which allow optimal use of the high scrap value and quality of the collected aluminium cans”. “Although used cans are also recycled into a wide range of other valuable end-use products such as bicycles or electric vehicles, the most efficient solution is to reuse them for the production of new cans. No other type of beverage packaging can achieve such high recycling rates while using so little raw material, resulting in product circularity as well as reduced carbon emissions,” he highlights.

On the other hand, Can manufacturers (members of Metal Packaging Europe) and their aluminium suppliers (members of European Aluminium) welcomed the new result, but say that with a little extra effort, recycling rates could increase further. In March 2021, the two industry associations launched their joint roadmap towards 100% can recycling by 2030.