In Ecuador, the technology already exists to make plastic bottles with 100% recycled material

Making plastic and thermoformed bottles (a kind of tubs) with 100% recycled material is already possible in Ecuador. This opens the door to better apply the so-called inclusive circular economy. In addition, technology in the country allows containers made with recycled material to be recycled again and with this leave or reduce the production of virgin plastic resin.

In the last decade, when the recycling of polyethylene terephthalate, better known as PET, gained momentum in the country, it was stated that it was not possible for a plastic bottle to contain 100% recycled material, but this changed and the challenges for Ecuador now Are others.

More than 80% of PET plastic bottles are collected in Ecuador, but there is concern in the industry about the uncertain future of the redeemable tax

“Technologically it is no longer a limitation. Technology has advanced faster than that popular wisdom to say that packaging could not be produced with 100% recycled material. Through Origin® we seek to communicate to the general population, to consumers, the importance of what recycling is, of separating the source and the importance of choosing brands that bet on recycled PET. Why isn’t there more recycled PET in the packaging? Because consumers haven’t asked for it and they don’t because they don’t know it can be done”, indicates Daniel Romero, manager of the Enkador company.

The company has incorporated technology that allows it to mince the bottles, purify the material, melt it down, and decontaminate it to the point where it is safe for food contact again. Recycled PET is endorsed by the FDA, from the United States, and the EFSA, from the European Union.

“We regenerate this plastic and it becomes bottles. We are the only company in the country and one of the few on the continent that already have integrated processes for making bottles and we have the knowledge to produce containers with up to 100% recycled PET.says Romero.

Enkador’s initial focus was to produce plastic resins to create new products such as synthetic polyester filament, fabrics and clothing, up to the recycling of one thousand tons of PET (45 million bottles) per month, of which at the moment 90 % goes to the production of R-PET flake and resin (recycled PET) for export, and 10% to the production of bottle preforms and R-PET bottles that contain up to 100% recycled material.

Although the intention is to significantly reverse these proportions and allocate more production to preforms and bottles for the Ecuadorian market. The bottles are purchased from 5,600 grassroots recyclers nationwide. Through its Origin® brand, they seek to close the inclusive circular economy cycle.

For the executive, the message of “no to plastic” has been spreading badly, since what should be sought is to take advantage of the plastic that already exists in the market, since much of it is contaminating ecosystems, and to stop producing or reduce its use. volume of virgin resin.

Recycled PET is also used for the production of textile fibers (polyester yarns), sheets for making tubs or thermoforming. Now, the problem is that, due to ignorance, when thermoformed products are produced with PET, they are not collected once they are discarded, so the recycling chain cannot be maintained. Enkador’s technology allows both plastic bottles and containers that have been made from recycled material to continue to be recycled.

“Plastic, like any material, if it is used a lot, loses properties, but the technology we have regenerates plastic and this allows us to turn it over countless times,” he says.

15% of bottles become bottles again after recycling; many more are transformed into plastic wood, cards and even into National Team shirts

However, the PET collection rate in the country is a great limitation because, for example, if Enkador were to acquire 50% of the bottles that are collected nationally, it cannot incorporate more than 50% of recycled PET in the new packaging. If the rate is increased, it will be possible to include a higher percentage of recycled resin and less virgin PET will be consumed.

Within single-use plastics, the local industry has managed to reuse about 80% of plastic bottles that go on the market, according to estimates by the Ecuadorian Plastics Association. However, only 15% of plastic bottles are turned back into bottles after the recycling process. The challenge is to increase that volume.

“Logic indicates that one must collect thermoforms to produce thermoforms and the same with bottles. It is the highest point that can be reached in the circular economy. There are companies that are migrating to PET because the other plastics are not collected or recycled. We have an ambitious objective, which is to increase the PET collection rate at the national level to change the environmental and social reality”, says Romero. (YO)