We broker waste plastics into recyclers, chemical recyclers and pyrolysis plants across Europe and on export. On what decides it: a clean, repeatable bale with a moisture figure and actual photographs places quickly, and an unsorted mixed load at any price is now genuinely hard to move. On the rules, the export picture changed materially in 2026 and it changed hardest for the lower grades. Tell us what you have arising monthly and we will tell you where it realistically goes.
- 1Collected as a mixed stream
- 2Sorted into polymer fractions
- 3Washed and baled or granulated
- 4Tested on contamination and moisture
- 5Mechanical recycling, or pyrolysis if it cannot be washed clean
The sorted fraction decides the outlet, not the other way round. A clean single-polymer bale goes to mechanical recycling and holds its value; a mixed or contaminated stream goes to pyrolysis, where it competes on calorific value and chlorine rather than on polymer purity.
The 2026 shipment rules, in plain terms
This is the biggest change to EU plastic waste movement in a generation, and the dates matter more than the detail:
- From 21 May 2026: exports of non-hazardous plastic waste to OECD countries require the full prior written notification and consent procedure. The old green-list Annex VII route no longer covers them.
- From 21 November 2026: exports of non-hazardous plastic waste from the EU to non-OECD countries are prohibited.
- From 21 May 2029: non-OECD countries may apply to the European Commission to be re-listed, if they can demonstrate environmentally sound management. Nothing moves to them before that.
- Intra-EU movements continue, but under the tightened regime of Regulation (EU) 2024/1157, with digital submission of documentation phasing in.
Which grades move, and which ones are about to have nowhere to go
The market for plastic waste is really several markets, and the 2026 export rules split them further apart. Where your material sits on this table decides more than the tonnage does.
| Grade | Where it goes | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| Clean single-polymer, post-consumer | Mechanical recycling into new packaging | Demand rises hard. PPWR obliges 30 % recycled content in contact-sensitive PET and single-use bottles from 2030, and only post-consumer counts |
| Clean single-polymer, post-industrial | Mechanical recycling into non-food applications | Good material, but it does not count towards the PPWR thresholds. Priced accordingly |
| Washed mixed polyolefin | Compounding, or chemical recycling | The swing grade. Follows the spread between mechanical and pyrolysis |
| Mixed rigids, printed film, hard-to-sort | Chemical recycling, or energy recovery | This is the grade the export ban hits. From 21 November 2026 the non-OECD route closes and it has to find a European or OECD home |
| PVC-contaminated or chlorine-rich | Very limited | Chlorine corrodes furnace tubes and downstream metallurgy. Pyrolysis will not take it either without pretreatment |
Read the fourth row twice, because it is the whole opportunity. Material that is expensive to sort loses its export route on a known date while demand for the clean fractions is legislated upward. The spread between good and poor material widens, and chemical recycling is the only outlet that genuinely tolerates the difficult end.
What a pyrolysis buyer screens on is not the bale grade but what it carries into the oil: chlorine and silicon above all, then nitrogen and metals. A bale that looks poor to a mechanical recycler can be perfectly acceptable to a pyrolysis operator, and the reverse is also true. See plastic pyrolysis oil.
What this actually does to the market
Two things, and they pull in opposite directions. First, volume that used to clear to non-OECD destinations has to find a European or OECD home, which puts sustained pressure on the lower grades, mixed rigids, heavily printed film, anything above roughly 5 % contamination. Second, notification adds weeks of lead time and a financial guarantee to shipments that used to move on an Annex VII document, which rewards anyone holding a standing notification and punishes spot exporters.
The practical consequence for a producer of arisings is that the value of consistency and documentation has gone up relative to the value of tonnage. A clean, repeatable 98/2 film bale with a moisture figure and photographs places quickly. An unsorted mixed load, at any price, is now genuinely hard to move.
Grades we work with
For material heading into chemical recycling, the relevant question is not the bale grade but the chlorine and silicon it will carry into the oil. See pyrolysis oil for what the downstream buyer screens on.
- LDPE film: 98/2 and 95/5 natural, clear, coloured and printed; post-industrial and post-consumer; baled or in regrind.
- LLDPE and stretch film: post-industrial, typically clean and single-source, the easiest grade to place.
- HDPE: blow-moulded rigids, natural and mixed colour, crates and drums; baled, regrind or washed flake.
- PP: bumpers, crates, big bags, raffia and injection-moulding arisings; baled, regrind or pellets.
- Mixed rigids and residual polyolefin fractions: usually routed to pyrolysis or energy recovery rather than mechanical recycling.
- Recycled pellets and compounds: where a producer wants to place surplus or off-grade production.
What a buyer needs before quoting
Plastic waste trades badly on description alone. Everything below is normal, not demanding, and having it ready shortens a negotiation from three weeks to three days.
| Polymer and grade | LDPE 98/2, HDPE natural rigid, PP regrind, and so on. |
|---|---|
| Origin | Post-industrial or post-consumer; single source or collected mix. |
| Form | Baled, loose, regrind, washed flake or pellet. |
| Bale weight and dimensions | Decides loading and freight cost per tonne. |
| Moisture | Percentage, and whether the material has been stored outside. |
| Contamination | Percentage and type, paper, label, other polymers, dirt. |
| Colour breakdown | Natural, clear, light, mixed or printed. |
| Photographs | Of the actual bales, not a stock image. Non-negotiable in practice. |
| Volume and frequency | Tonnes per month and whether it is a one-off or an ongoing arising. |
| EWC / Basel code | For example B3011 for the relevant plastic entries; drives the shipment route. |
| Loading point and Incoterms | EXW, FCA, DAP; whether the site can load a 40 ft HC. |
| Sample availability | A 5 to 10 kg representative sample for anything ongoing. |
How we work it
We act for waste management companies and manufacturers placing regular arisings, and for recyclers, compounders and pyrolysis operators who need steady, predictable input rather than opportunistic lots.
Because we are paid a commission on business that performs, we will tell a seller when a grade is not worth offering in its current form, and quite often the fix is upstream. Separating a printed film fraction at source, or getting a moisture figure onto the offer, moves more value than another round of price haggling.
Frequently asked questions
What happens to plastic waste exports after 2026?
Under Regulation (EU) 2024/1157, exports of non-hazardous plastic waste to non-OECD countries are banned from 21 November 2026. From 21 May 2026 exports to OECD countries move to the notification procedure, meaning prior written consent rather than green-list simplicity. Non-OECD countries may request a derogation from 21 May 2029 by demonstrating environmentally sound management.
What does the export ban do to prices?
It widens the gap between good and poor material, on a known date. Volume that used to clear to non-OECD destinations has to find a European or OECD home, which presses hardest on mixed rigids, heavily printed film and anything expensive to sort. At the same time PPWR raises demand for clean recyclate. Supply and demand are being legislated in opposite directions for different grades.
Is chemical recycling a way around the sorting problem?
Partly, and that is exactly why it matters after 2026. Pyrolysis tolerates contamination that mechanical recycling cannot, so material with nowhere else to go acquires a route. What pyrolysis does not tolerate is chlorine and silicon, so PVC content and certain additives still decide whether a bale is usable. See plastic pyrolysis oil.
What information does a buyer need before quoting on a bale?
Polymer and grade, origin (post-industrial or post-consumer, single source or collected), form (baled, loose, regrind, washed flake), tonnage per month, and a photograph. For anything heading to chemical recycling, add chlorine and silicon. Plastic waste trades badly on description alone, and having this ready turns a three-week negotiation into a three-day one.
When does the EU plastic waste export ban start?
Exports of non-hazardous plastic waste from the EU to non-OECD countries are prohibited from 21 November 2026 under Regulation (EU) 2024/1157. Since 21 May 2026, exports to OECD countries have required the full prior written notification and consent procedure rather than the green-list route. Non-OECD countries may apply for re-listing from 21 May 2029.
Can I still export plastic waste from the EU to Turkey?
Turkey is an OECD member, so it is not caught by the non-OECD prohibition. However, since 21 May 2026 such shipments fall under the prior written notification and consent procedure, which means competent-authority consent at both ends, a financial guarantee and a materially longer lead time than an Annex VII movement. Turkey also applies its own national import restrictions on plastic waste, so confirm the current position at the receiving end before committing.
What is the difference between 98/2 and 95/5 LDPE film?
It is the cleanliness ratio: 98/2 means around 98 % target polymer to 2 % contamination, 95/5 around 95 % to 5 %. The gap sounds small and is not, 98/2 clears readily to mechanical recyclers, while 95/5 and below competes for a narrower set of buyers and, since the 2026 export changes, a much narrower set of destinations. Moisture is assessed separately and can matter as much as the contamination figure.
Do you handle mixed or contaminated plastic waste?
Yes, but honestly. Mixed rigids and heavily contaminated fractions generally route to pyrolysis feed or energy recovery rather than mechanical recycling, and price accordingly. What we will not do is take an unsorted load to market as something it is not, that wastes the seller's time and costs us the buyer.
What is Basel code B3011?
B3011 covers the plastic waste entries on the Basel Convention green list, introduced by the 2019 plastic waste amendments that replaced the former single B3010 entry. It is used for sorted, single-polymer and readily recyclable plastic waste meeting the entry conditions. The code determines which shipment procedure applies, so getting it right on the paperwork is not cosmetic.
Do you buy the material yourselves?
No. We are a broker: we introduce the seller to the buyer, agree the terms between them and take a commission on concluded business. We never take title to the cargo, so we have no position to protect and no reason to press a load onto a buyer who cannot run it.
What volumes do you work with?
From a single 40 ft container of a clean, well-described grade up to ongoing programmes of several hundred tonnes a month. Recurring arisings are where a broker earns their keep, because the value is in a stable home rather than a one-off clearance.
Market news
The most recent headlines touching this market, followed by wider news from across the feedstock and renewable fuel sector. The links go to the publisher; we do not host or edit their reporting, and a headline here is not our endorsement of it. Scroll for more.
- Kimchi waste could become viable feedstock for bioplastics
- Braskem biobased polymer helps Deterra drug disposal pouch earn packaging awards
- Eni and PETRONAS to explore high-performance bio-gasoline
- Linglong signs $2 billion Egypt investment MoU
- BTMA to represent European national associations at Tyres Europe board meetings
- Osaka Gas claims STS LNG bunkering first in Osaka Bay
- ISWG-GHG 22: Non-profits react
- USTC brings Copenhagen-based offices together in new hub
- ORLEN instigates new Baltic regional energy initiative
- TotalEnergies Lubmarine launches lubricant for 4-stroke medium speed marine engines
- IMO carbon price heads for December showdown
- LyondellBasell: Pyrolysis Reactors Installed for MoReTec Plant in Wesseling
- Sustainable aviation fuel pioneer completes successful trials
- Louis Dreyfus Company to generate biogas from citrus waste
- Nature by Design: A decade of IUCN, Monaco collaboration driving circular solutions for biodiversity
- European Digital Sustainability Skills Conference
- UCL reacts to IMO ISWG-GHG: ‘Steady progress on the Net Zero Framework’ made but ‘high uncertainty’ remains
- ISWG-GHG 22: ‘Genuine willingness’ for further NZF progress, observes Chair
18 headlines, updated automatically. Last refreshed .
Sources and further reading
Primary sources for the rules and figures on this page, so you can check them yourself. Legislation is amended: always read the consolidated text on the date that matters to you.
Who to ask about Waste plastics
Just ask. Regular arisings to place, or looking for steady bale supply? Send the spec, photos and a moisture figure. You get Bart van den Brug on the other end, same working day, in English or Dutch, and across the team also in French, Portuguese, Polish, Czech and Russian.
On how we work: on the feedstocks and fuels on this site we are a broker. We never take title, we do not trade our own book, and we are paid a commission on business that concludes. Additives are the one exception: those we also buy and sell for our own account, and we say in which capacity we are acting before you commit to anything. Either way you will hear it from us when the answer is no, or when your parcel is not ready for the conversation you want to have. A market read or a second opinion on a specification costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
Happy to look at whatever you have, even if it is half an analysis and a question.
+31 6 115 83 448
bart@sustainablecommodities.eu
Sustainable Commodities 3 B.V., Lemmer, the Netherlands
Ask about Waste plastics
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Or e-mail us directly: bart@sustainablecommodities.eu
Last reviewed 08 September 2026. Regulatory references are given for orientation and are not legal advice: verify against the current Official Journal text before contracting.