LyondellBasell and AFA Nord, a recycler of agricultural film, have announced a new partnership. The companies have agreed to create a 50:50 joint venture, called LMF Nord GmbH, for the mechanical recycling of post commercial flexible secondary packaging waste.
The new plant will be located in northern Germany and focus on the recycling of LLDPE and LDPE waste. The aim is to produce quality recycled plastic materials for use in flexible packaging. Start of production is expected for early 2025.
It has traditionally been extremely difficult to recycle secondary plastic packaging, such as stretch or shrink film, into high-quality raw materials that can meet the requirements of the packaging industry in terms of strength and transparency.
The Joint Venture will provide recycled LDPE and LLDPE materials to complement the existing CirculenRecover range of high density polyethylene and polypropylene products, according to Yvonne van der Laan, LyondellBasell's executive vice president, Circular and Low Carbon Solutions.The CirculenRecover product family comprises a wide range of mechanically recycled materials that are currently used in applications ranging from electrical appliances, to washing detergent bottles and suitcases.
The VV ‘adds to our efforts in advanced recycling and delivers against our integrated hub strategy, where we invest upstream to provide feedstock from various plastic waste streams’, she added. “With this efficient full suite of solutions we continue to be the preferred partner of our customers."
The new recycling unit will have a production capacity of 26,000 tons per year of recycled LDPE and LLDPE grades. The new grades will be marketed by LyondellBasell through its CirculenRecover family of products for use in various applications from stretch films to collation shrink films.
TM Recycling GmbH, a sister company of AFA Nord, will be responsible for supplying the feedstock for LMF Nord GmbH. Both companies are member sof the Mensing Group.
AFA Nord has already been operating Germany's only agricultural film recycling plant for a number of years and has broad experience with the production of recycled materials, said managing director Andreas Mensing.
"Together with LyondellBasell we can contribute to a circular economy and increase the availability of recycled solutions for flexible packaging applications."