TOMRA and Borealis Open Plastic Waste Sorting Recycling Facility

TOMRA and Borealis have launched an advanced mechanical recycling demo facility in Lahnstein, Germany. The facility was established as a result of a chemistry and technology partnership designed to achieve unique results. TOMRA Vice President and Circular Economy Head Volker Rehrmann commented on the matter, stating: "This facility is just the beginning of a process that demonstrates what can be achieved when key players in the value chain come together to create a truly significant impact in the market. At a time when we have just introduced our new Circular Economy Division, it is clear that waste management and important projects like this will play a major role on the path to a sustainable future. When it comes to recyclable polymer waste, we are proud to put into service one of the most advanced mechanical recycling facilities. This facility will become an important element in the coming years as we accelerate the transition to a circular economy. Being part of this pioneering project is very exciting for us," he said.

Borealis Polyolefin, Innovation and Technology, Circular Economy Solutions Vice President Lucrèce Foufopoulos said: "This facility brings together the principles of the EverMinds™ platform established by Borealis, which aims to drive innovation through collaboration in the field of plastic circularity. Delivering first-class recycled material suitable for extremely demanding applications for brand owners and converters is Borealis' latest contribution to developing a more circular plastic economy. Life requires progress; we are redesigning some things through collaboration for a more sustainable future."

  The facility's operation is a joint venture of TOMRA, Borealis and Zimmerman. Borealis, responsible for the commercial success of the facility, contributes its expertise and knowledge in innovation, recycling and compounding. Similarly, TOMRA contributes as a provider of technology-based solutions and enables the circular economy through advanced collection and sorting systems thanks to its proven expertise, existing processes and market knowledge. Zimmerman, an experienced waste management company in sorting various waste streams including plastics, is responsible for the successful operation of the facility and product quality. Equipped with state-of-the-art technology, the facility processes both rigid and flexible household waste. Unlike many existing recycling facilities, the facility will produce advanced solutions needed for demanding plastic applications in various sectors such as automotive and consumer products. These Borcycle™ M grade recycled polymers will meet customer quality requirements throughout the value chain with high purity, low odor, high product consistency and clear color fractions.

The purpose of this demo facility is to produce materials that brand owners and converters can identify, approve and demonstrate suitability for use in extremely demanding applications. The technical success achieved will form the basis for an advanced recycling facility at commercial scale.

Procter & Gamble (P&G) Technical Director, R&D Packaging Sustainability, Gian De Belder commented on the matter, saying: "At P&G, we design packaging with 'future life' in mind to create a stronger circular economy. In order for the industry to contribute to this vision, we must increase the supply of high-quality recycled plastic. The innovative approach adopted by TOMRA and Borealis indicates the potential to achieve a leap forward in both the quality and quantity of PCR materials available for our brands and contributes to our target of reducing virgin plastic use by 50 percent or at a scale of 300 kilotons annually by 2030. Initial tests conducted on the material are very promising," he said. Henkel International Packaging Technology Home Care Director Thorsten Leopold commented as follows: "As Henkel, we want to reduce fossil-based virgin plastic use by 50 percent by 2025. For example, we will increase the share of recycled plastics globally to above 30 percent. One of the major challenges with more circular packaging is the unavailability of high-quality recycled plastic that can be used as packaging for our brands. Therefore, we are very excited that this project brings together three proven experts in the value chain with the passion to take mechanical recycling to a new level."