"After 20 years of tracking recycling rates in Europe, our industry is very happy with the progress made. In 1992 only 6,000 tonnes of post-consumer beverage cartons were recycled, in 2012 this number has increased to about 380,000 tons. ACE members have been very much engaged across Europe to foster the recycling of beverage cartons. A lot has been already achieved, but more progress can be made in supporting the recycling of beverage cartons by ensuring an appropriate EU regulatory framework is in place," says Katarina Molin, Director General of ACE. "Recycling is definitely our favoured waste management option. Increasing beverage carton recycling across Europe is fully in line with the Commission's vision to move towards a recycling economy as laid down in the EU Roadmap for a Resource Efficient Europe."
Beverage cartons are made on average from 75% paper board, 21% polymers and 4% aluminium. The paper fibres from post-consumer beverage cartons are high quality and as such play a crucial role in ensuring that recycled paper maintains its properties and can be used to produce new packaging for consumer goods. Once recycled the polymer and aluminium is also in demand in a number of different applications ranging from composite products such as construction panels to industrial raw material.
The Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE) provides an European platform for beverage carton manufacturers and their paperboard suppliers to benchmark and profile cartons as renewable, recyclable and low-carbon packaging solutions.
