Welcome to the Plastics Weekly, NEO’s regular news monitoring of the plastics industry.
This week’s highlights:
- Plastic producers have promoted their product despite knowing for more than 30 years that recycling is not economically or technically feasible as a waste management solution, according to a new report. According to the Centre for Climate Integrity (CCI), a fossil-fuel accountability advocacy group that published the report, oil and petrochemical companies, as well as their trade associations, may have broken laws designed to protect the public from misleading marketing and pollution. (The Guardian)
- London-based oil major Shell PLC has inked a chemical recyling deal with plastic waste recycling firm Corsair Bangkok Co Ltd, part of Corsair Group, to supply Shell Singapore Pte Ltd with pyrolysis oil, a mixed plastic waste feedstock, from its recycling facility in Thailand. According to Shell’s general manager of Global Plastic Circular Economy, Phil Turley, chemical recycling is a viable way to complement mechanical recycling and is needed to achieve higher recycling rates as part of a commitment to a “sustainable and circular future.” (Market Screener)
- Praj Industries, a leader in India’s industrial sector, is launching a pilot plant for biodegradable plastics in April. The plant will produce polylactic acid (PLA), a biodegradable and biobased plastic, as an eco-friendly alternative to traditional plastics. This move comes in the wake of recent policy initiatives by the Indian government to promote biomanufacturing and aligns with the global drive to promote sustainability and reduce plastic pollution. (BNN)