ARA collected 534,000 t of separated waste in first half of 2017 / Collection volumes grew for all materials

Excellent first half of 2017 / Business forecasts exceeded / End-users the most upbeat, machinery more subdued / Industry can expect a record year / Readership survey

Severely restricted imports of plastic waste by end of 2017 / Official notification to the WTO

Yield from recyclers has gone down 5% in 5 years / Rising costs for European PET recyclers / PRE sees need to upgrade sorting processes

Signs of intensifying scrap import controls

Merger of recycling associations Eco-Emballages and Ecofolio

PRE annual meeting highlights efforts to integrate recycled plastics / Industry shifting to a circular economy / Marketing and design crucial for sustainability

German initiative increases collection volume by almost 17%

More than half a million tonnes of PVC recycled in 2016 / VinylPlus conference hears of progress in material's role in a circular economy

Switzerland facing declining quality of PET bottle collections / Recycling processes increasingly hampered

Sesotec builds sorting machine for Polymark project / Fluorescent markers differentiate between food and non-food bottles

North American post-consumer film recovery slows / Lower oil price curbs demand / Avangard invests in LDPE recycling facility

British Plastics Federation welcomes China's "National Sword" initiative / Plan to highlight sustainable UK recycling markets

Collection of non-bottle rigid plastic waste fell by 3.5% in 2015 / Domestic purchases rose but exports down 13% / ACC report

New anti-smuggling campaign to combat foreign waste / Move follows the successful implementation of the "Green Fence" policy in 2013