Packaging specialist ALPLA is securing the long-term supply of food-grade PET recycling material (rPET) by expanding the recycling plant in Radomsko, Poland. The internationally active company, which is also present in Asia, is investing around eight million Euros in a state-of-the-art extrusion line. Ten years after its opening, the PET recycling team (PRT) Radomsko is one of the largest recycling plants for this material in Europe with a production capacity of 54,000 tonnes of food-grade rPET pellets per year.
“ALPLA stands for sustainable packaging solutions made of plastic. As a system provider, we develop products optimized for recycling, process high proportions of recyclate in production and take care of efficient recycling. With our global focus on recycling and our commitment in Central and Eastern Europe, we make a significant contribution to the regional bottle-to-bottle cycle,” explains Dietmar Marin, ALPLA’s managing director of its Recycling Division.
Recently, with support from ALPLA, Coca-Cola India launched a new bottle made from 100% recycled PET (rPET) in Andhra Pradesh. This is the first time that a 100% rPET bottle has been used in India for food or drinks.
Promoting the recycling loop
By 2025, all PET beverage bottles in the EU should contain at least 25% post-consumer recycled (PCR) material. With the expansion of the site in Poland, ALPLA is creating the basis for meeting the EU requirements in the regional markets.
“We actively work with customers to create closed loops for PET packaging and accompany them on their sustainability path. To this end, we are taking care of meeting tomorrow’s needs today and already have some excellent examples in reality,” emphasizes Mariusz Musiał, ALPLA country manager, Poland. “With this investment we are targeting the Polish market in particular and ensuring that sufficient rPET is available to our customers,” adds Beata Szynkiewicz-Razik, commercial director of PRT Radomsko.
The installation of the third extrusion line in Radomsko will create 12 additional jobs and expand the team to more than 100 employees. “PRT Radomsko has stood for top quality and excellent operational performance for over ten years. The expansion of the site is a confirmation of our highly motivated team and strengthens our position in the market,” says plant manager Marcin Jabłoński.
ALPLA invests around 50 million euros annually in the global expansion of its recycling activities. With lighthouse projects such as reusable PET, bottles made from 100 per cent rPET and the recent start of production at the joint venture recycling plants ENVICCO (Thailand) and PET Recycling Team Targu Mures (Romania), the company is fully on track.
This was followed in June 2023 by the announcement of the first recycling plant in Africa in Ballito, South Africa. The total annual production capacity of all recycling companies and collaborations is around 266,000 tonnes for rPET (recycled PET) and 74,000 tonnes for rHDPE (recycled HDPE).
