Less than a tenth of the plastic produced in 2022 was from recycled materials, according to a detailed study, which found a number of challenges in increasing this rate.
Academics from Beijing found that just 38Mt of the material was made from secondary materials three years ago.
Their paper, Complexities of the Global Plastics Supply Chain Revealed in a Trade-linked Material Flow Analysis, was published in the Communications Earth and Environment journal this month.
About 268Mt of plastic waste was generated in 2022, the study said. Almost a third of this was from China, with a further sixth coming from the US.
Four-tenths of the total waste arising was landfilled, the academics found.
Although 75Mt was collected and sorted, little over half of this amount was actually recycled, according to the study.
“Several challenges contribute to the limited progress in enhancing global recycling practices,” the academics said.
The paper cited diversity and complexity of plastic materials; contamination with food residues, labels and other impurities; and economic factors including fluctuating oil prices.
