Product

Greiner Packaging joins circPLAST-mr research project

28/03/2022 | 2 min read

Stephan Laske

Johannes Kepler University (JKU) in Linz, Austria, and its Institute of Polymeric Materials and Testing are heading up the circPLAST-mr research project, focused on the mechanical recycling of plastics. In total, 25 well-known partners from the worlds of science and industry, including Greiner Packaging, are working together to optimize the recycling process and ultimately prevent plastic waste from entering the natural environment. With a research budget of €6.2 million, the new project will run until March 2026 and has received €4 million in funding from Austria’s Ministry for Climate Action.

Plastic waste does not belong in our oceans or our natural environment. However, this material exists in many forms. If we want to recycle plastic more effectively, the different types need to be properly separated. This would make it easier to recycle the 920,000 metric tons of plastic waste generated in Austria each year, which would significantly reduce the strain on the environment. With the EU’s plastics strategy aiming for a recycling rate of 55% by 2030 and the current recycling rate in Austria standing at just 26%, action must be taken.

The circPLAST-mr research project – led by the JKU’s Institute of Polymeric Materials and Testing – is now addressing this important challenge. For the first time in Austria, 25 partners from the fields of science and industry have joined forces to increase the proportion of recycled plastics and improve the closed loop for plastics at every stage – from production through consumers to recycling.

With the flagship circPLAST-mr project funded by the Austrian Ministry for Climate Action (BMK), we have successfully devised a research project with the ability to set a positive example right across Europe in terms of volume and design as well as partner structure. We are already eagerly looking forward to working together. For students, this research project also creates great opportunities for academic work

Reinhold Lang, project lead for circPLAST-mr

One of the project’s notable features is the above-mentioned partner structure, which spans the entire knowledge and value chain underpinning the mechanical recycling of plastics – including Greiner Packaging. The 25 partners bring crucial expertise in materials science and engineering, process engineering, measurement and sensor technology, and digital innovation as well as process design based on eco-efficiency. This allows for an interdisciplinary approach of impressive scale.

As producers of plastic packaging, we are aware of the importance of a circular economy, which we are working to advance and implement at every level. We are therefore pleased to be part of the flagship circPLAST-mr project along with the entire industry – an undertaking that is also clearly supported and backed by policymakers. The only way we can obtain high-quality recycled materials that can subsequently be reused for food packaging is if we succeed in making a successful circular economy a reality together. That is our declared goal – and in that spirit, the holistic approach pursued in this project is highly significant.

Manfred Stanek, CEO, Greiner Packaging

The need for a circular economy is one of the most important issues of our time, so I am delighted that JKU is taking on a pioneering role in the plastics space. As we aim to reduce plastic waste, however, many different perspectives are needed. With that in mind, this flagship project will not only draw on materials and process engineering – it will also incorporate technologies of the future like AI and data science. By combining a wide variety of disciplines and areas of expertise, there is every chance that we can make mechanical recycling even more effective, says Meinhard Lukas, Rector, JKU.

To find out more, visit jku.at/mechanisches-recycling (German).