The European Commission has unveiled a new set of pilot actions to establish common EU-wide rules for plastics recycling, aiming to revitalize the Union’s struggling recycling sector. The initiative forms part of a broader policy rollout expected in the coming months, addressing market fragmentation, high energy costs, and competitive pressure from non-EU producers.

As demand for recycled and circular plastics grows, the Commission noted that recycling capacity in Europe has slowed significantly—rising only modestly over recent years—while the proportion of recycled materials in overall material use remains limited.

The package introduced by the Commission includes EU-wide end-of-waste criteria for plastics under the Waste Framework Directive, clarifying when plastic waste ceases to be waste and becomes a tradable raw material. Harmonizing these criteria is expected to reduce administrative barriers, foster a single market for recycled plastics, and improve cross-border trade and use of recycled materials.

Additional measures will help standardize how member states calculate, verify, and report recycled content in PET single-use bottles, notably including chemically recycled content to support EU recycling targets.

To ensure fair competition between EU-produced and imported plastics, the Commission also announced plans for separate customs codes to distinguish recycled from virgin plastics, alongside enhanced market monitoring to inform potential future trade measures.

These actions precede the planned launch of the Circular Economy Act in 2026, which aims to accelerate the transition to a more circular economy and double the EU’s circularity rate.

Jessika Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, stated that Europe’s competitiveness and resilience depend on efficient resource use and that the measures will help build a genuine Single Market for circular materials.