Considerably ahead of the objectives set by the European Union, Italy demonstrates its virtuousness by achieving a 71.5% packaging recycling rate.

In 2022, in Italy, it was possible to recycle 71.5% of packaging waste, thus transforming 10 million 400 thousand packages into new products, in contrast to the 14.5 million tons of packaging initially used.

A notable result which has allowed Italy to anticipate the objectives set by the European Union, not only for 2025, which envisaged the recycling of 65% of the packaging used, but also for 2030, when the required recycling rate would be 70%.

These data were photographed from the CONAI General Final Report, released at the beginning of September, and take into account the new calculation methodology envisaged by Decision 2019/655 of the European Union. A new methodology, more rigorous than the previous one as it changes the point of measurement of the recycled quantities and does not take into account some waste resulting from the industrial treatment of plastics.

These results are the result of all-Italian excellence, elements of strong competitiveness on an international scale, which are an incentive to move forward with determination also in the field of an intelligent and sustainable circular economy.

RECYCLED PACKAGING WASTE: THE NUMBERS BY MATERIAL TYPE

In 2022, in Italy, different types of packaging waste were recycled and subjected to a reuse process:

  • 418 tons of steel;
  • 60 thousand tons of aluminum;
  • 4 million and 311 thousand tons of paper;
  • 2 million 147 thousand tons of wood;
  • 1 million and 122 thousand tons of plastic and bioplastic;
  • 2 million and 293 thousand tons of glass.

An important result that is relevant not only for recycling in the strict sense, but also for the energy savings resulting from the recovery of packaging. In this context, the total packaging recovered amounts to 11 million 700 thousand tonnes, thus reaching 80.5% of what was initially released for consumption.

These data from the observatory demonstrate how the Italian recycling industry works, is effective and efficient. A model that serves as an example throughout Europe: more is recycled, at lower costs and with a high level of transparency. The trends for 2022 confirm this, despite a new, more severe calculation procedure being used. The quantities of recycled product and those reused for consumption remain stable compared to 2021.