The CIA gathers industry insights through a quarterly business survey to advocate for our members’ interests with policy makers, regulators and other stakeholders.
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Use our Sustainable Health metrics to drive continuous improvement and foster a sustainable, healthy workplace.
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The chemical and pharmaceutical industry is fundamental to modern society. With an immense variety of products, from vital medicines and foods, the construction of buildings, to transport and leisure, the industry truly does have an impact on virtually every aspect of our daily lives.
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The CIA continues to monitor key developments under the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) that could affect UK manufacturers, recyclers and supply chains. Of particular interest are upcoming decisions on how different recycling technologies will be assessed and recognised. The following article outlines the key issues and the CIA’s position.
The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) is expected to influence packaging sustainability and recycling requirements across European supply chains, with important implications for UK chemical companies trading with the EU. While the UK is no longer directly bound by EU legislation, PPWR is likely to shape market expectations, investment decisions and future policy discussions on circularity and recycled content.
A key area of interest is the development of sustainability criteria under Articles 6 (Recyclable Packaging) and 7 (Minimum Recycled Content in Plastic Packaging). The European Commission is developing detailed rules that will determine how different recycling technologies contribute towards packaging recyclability and recycled-content requirements. These decisions are expected to influence future investment and innovation across the recycling sector.
Industry stakeholders have highlighted concerns that overly prescriptive criteria could unintentionally favour specific recycling pathways. Mechanical recycling remains essential to the circular economy but cannot process all plastic waste streams, particularly mixed, contaminated or multi-layer materials. Advanced recycling technologies can play a complementary role by recovering value from materials that may otherwise be lost to landfill or energy recovery.
The Chemical Industries Association (CIA), aligned with Cefic, supports a technology-neutral approach to sustainability criteria. Assessments should focus on outcomes such as material quality, functionality, environmental performance and contribution to circularity, rather than prescribing specific technologies. Different waste streams require different solutions, and maintaining flexibility will be important to support innovation and investment.
The CIA also believes sustainability assessments should consider a broad range of environmental factors, including resource efficiency, material recovery rates, landfill diversion and waste reduction, alongside carbon emissions. A balanced approach will help ensure the most effective environmental outcomes across the full lifecycle of materials.
For UK manufacturers, access to reliable, high-quality recycled feedstocks will be critical to meeting growing demand for recycled content. At the same time, recycling technology developers require regulatory certainty to support investment and commercial scale-up. Divergence between UK and EU approaches could increase compliance burdens and create uncertainty for businesses operating across both markets.
The CIA will continue to engage with policymakers and industry partners to support pragmatic, science-based and technology-neutral approaches that encourage innovation, strengthen competitiveness and accelerate the transition to a more circular economy.
Ricardo, with the support of the Chemical Industries Association (CIA), has published a second instalment in their series exploring the environmental impact of chemical products, to help chemical organisations advance their sustainability journey.
The Chemical Industries Association is the organisation representing and advising chemical and pharmaceutical companies located across the UK. Our core membership is a diverse mix of chemical and pharmaceutical companies operating within the UK
