Only 9.5% of the plastic produced worldwide in 2022 came from recycled materials, despite growing attention to recycling and global efforts to curb plastic waste.
Helen Albert reports for Chemistry World.
In short:
- Of the 400 million tons of plastic produced in 2022, just 38 million tons used recycled feedstock; the rest came from virgin fossil-based materials.
- Although 75 million tons of plastic waste were set aside for recycling, only half was actually processed due to contamination, poor sorting infrastructure, and international shipping to inadequate facilities.
- Regional disparities were stark: The EU recycled 30% of its plastic in 2022, while the U.S. managed only 5%, with most plastic waste still ending up in landfills or incinerators.
Key quote:
"The low recycling rate is due to a number of challenges including plastic diversity, contamination and economic barriers."
— Quanyin Tan, Tsinghua University
Why this matters:
Plastic waste is accumulating faster than systems can manage it, with major consequences for ecosystems, public health, and climate. When plastics degrade — or are burned — they release harmful pollutants, including microplastics and toxic chemicals, that can enter soil, water, and the food chain. Many of the compounds used in plastic production are petroleum-based and may leach endocrine-disrupting chemicals or other toxins over time. Plastic recycling, also known as chemical recycling, comes with its own pollution problems.
As international negotiators prepare to finalize a binding treaty to curb plastic pollution, understanding the system-wide inefficiencies — as well as opportunities to reduce plastic production altogether — is vital. Without dramatic shifts in how plastics are made, used, and recovered, the world risks locking itself into decades more of pollution, health threats, and missed opportunities for a circular economy.
Learn more: Recycling plastics “extremely problematic” due to toxic chemical additives: Report
