A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR DOMESTIC WASTE – KLӦCKNER PENTAPLAST RESEARCHES NEW RECYCLING STRATEGIES IN SPAIN WITH PROJECT CEUS
London, UK – July 2019 – Klöckner Pentaplast (kp) has announced it is taking part in a unique
four-year collaboration project to recover plastics from general domestic waste collections.
The first of its kind, this unique project is being trialled in Pravia, Spain and is designed to recover
plastics from domestic general waste collections – upon its success it could be rolled out
nationwide.
CEUS – “Circular Economy for Urban Plastic Waste” – has been established with a number of
stakeholders working to avoid plastics from domestic general waste collections ending up in landfill
that could otherwise be recycled. This innovative project delivers value both financially and
environmentally to a future with less waste, helping towards kp’s goals in their Positive Plastics
Pledge.
Transformation and collection of all recoverable domestic waste plastics will be possible thanks to
research and development implemented in the municipal waste management plants. The new state
of the art equipment and sorting process can segregate the contaminated general waste, including
food waste, and remove any plastics and other materials that can be recovered, recycled or downcycled, rather than sending them to landfill.
The PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic material recovered from CEUS is being used in trials
with kp to demonstrate tray to tray recycling, and to encourage consumers to recycle all of their PET
food packaging regardless of its condition. kp will be using the recovered PET from the trial to
create mono PET trays that can be used for more food packaging, creating a closed loop process.
Other polymers and materials are being recovered and used by other stakeholders involved in the
project. Over a four-year period, the scheme will be running several trials to see if the new sorting
process methodology can be rolled out nationwide in Spain, making a change to the way we
recycle.
Ana Fernandez, Global Innovation Director for Food Packaging, says that until now residues from the
collection of mixed plastic materials from domestic general waste bins presented a particular recycling
challenge. “The CEUS project will research and trial new treatments that can transform and create
value from domestic plastic waste for the first time. Different types of domestic waste mixed together
present a major challenge when classifying, sorting, during treatment, and transformation.
Sustainability is a top priority for kp, and we are so pleased to be part of a trial which gives so much
added value to materials currently only seen as waste”.
Working on CEUS alongside kp are several companies across the full value chain: URBASER for
waste management, ACTECO as a recycler, and converters PICDA, NORTPALET and ERUM. The
CEUS project is funded by the working framework CIEN of CDTI (Spanish Ministry of Science and
Innovation) and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
About Klöckner Pentaplast
Focused on delivering its vision: The Sustainable
Protection of Everyday Needs, kp is a global leader in rigid and flexible packaging, specialty film
solutions, serving the pharmaceutical, medical device, food, beverage and card
markets, amongst others. With a broad and innovative portfolio of packaging and
product films and services, kp plays an integral role in the customer value
chain by safeguarding product integrity, assuring safety and consumer health,
improving sustainability and protecting brand reputation. Founded in 1965 kp
has 32 plants in 18 countries and employs over 5,900 people committed to
serving customers worldwide in over 60 locations.
Media Contacts:
Dawn Trail
Group Director, Global Communications
kpinfo@kpfilms.com