Spain recycled more than 1.6 million tons of household packaging and saw a 1.5% reduction in the recycling of metal packaging

Last year Ecoembes, a company dedicated to the recycling of household packaging, recorded an increase in the number of these items compared to the previous year. 3.6% more of this household packaging was sent for recycling than in 2021, which was converted into raw material for manufacturing new products or packaging. The recycling of these tons cost Ecoembes close to 784 million euros. 682 million was contributed by the companies that are part of its system through the payment of a fee for each container they place on the market, as required by law.

The amount of household packaging recycled last year was 3.6% higher than the previous year. In addition, the recycling process in Spain has made great progress in recent years, to the point that Ecoembes reported to the Ministry for Ecological Transition that 1,627,313 tons of household packaging such as plastics, metals, briks, wood and paper-cardboard were recycled during 2022, which has meant an increase of 3.6 % compared to the previous year. The information was made public on the occasion of the celebration of World Recycling Day.

According to the total amount of recycled materials, it was observed that the amount of plastic containers increased by 4.7% (708,596 tons) compared to last year; 666,344 corresponded to paper and cardboard (+4.5%) and 243,360 were of metallic type (-1.5%). There was also an increase of 6.8% based on the 9012 tons of wood packaging. These actions have reduced water consumption by 21.46 million m3, reduced energy use by 6.72 million Mhw and avoided the emission of 1.69 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.

In 2022, Ecoembes spent €784 million to ensure the recycling of light packaging and paper/cardboard. Of this amount, 388,747 yellow garbage cans, 243,399 blue garbage cans and 56,700 colored garbage cans were installed in different public areas. There are trucks equipped to supply the collection, payments to operators, as well as information campaigns to orient the public on this process. In addition, it is important to highlight the important work of innovation to improve the quality of selection, which has allowed 71 plants to be automated.

On the other hand, the payment of these costs by Ecoembes is carried out through the 56 agreements signed with the Public Administrations in charge of providing these services, which allow 99.85% of the population in Spain to have access to the selective collection of plastic, metal, brik, wood, paper and cardboard household packaging. These agreements contemplate payment formulas, taking into account the characteristics of each municipality, giving priority to obtaining material in quantity and quality with a good cost-efficiency ratio in economic, social and environmental terms.

It should be added that Ecoembes takes these recycling costs as the basis for calculating the revenues needed to cover them each year. These revenues come from the sale of recovered material to approved recyclers, 212 million in 2022, and from the Green Dot fee paid by the 13,274 companies that are part of this system for each container they place on the market. These rates are calculated based on efficiency and co-responsibility criteria. Last year, these companies contributed 682 million euros for the 1,927,441 tons of packaging put back on the market.

Rosa Trigo, who is CEO of the Ecoembes organization, indicated that recycling in Spain is about to enter a new stage. “Twenty-five years ago we started to build from scratch what today is recycling in Spain, betting on public-private collaboration and offering our companies services that go beyond mere regulatory obligations, working as partners. It is that experience and knowledge that has prepared us to face today the important transformation that the regulations demand and that will bring us firmly closer to a circular economy.”concluded the CEO.