| |DECEMBER 202119the bottled water is nourishing, calorie-free, and comes without any additives or added sugar this type is expected to be the most consumed drink. As per studies conducted by the European Federation of Bottled Water (EFBW), over 48 percent of people prefer consuming bottled water rather than buying packaged non-alcoholic beverages, such as sparkling or still water, water with either low mineral content or high mineral content. Therefore, water remains the most favored by consumers. Furthermore, this is one of the major reasons why big beverage manufacturers are investing hugely in premium water bottle manufacturing. They are doing this aiming to grow or increase their dominance in the international beverages market.CHALLENGES FACED BY THE PET PREFORMS INDUSTRYOne of the major challenges faced by the PET preforms industry is the ban on single-use plastics. This is due to the demand for banning single-use plastics made by most governments across the globe. Not just the governments but also the Non-Government Organizations and Environmentalists. Post-implementation of measures intending to decrease the use of plastic has been impacted plastic bottle usage to a greater extent. Furthermore, the growing trend towards sustainable as well as recyclable materials has resulted in huge demands.PET RECYCLINGSince today we live in an industrialized affluent society, we have started to rely more on plastics. However, recycling must increase significantly in order to stop or minimize the usage and large production of new plastic products. Therefore, this can be achieved only through the effective and high-quality recycling process and this can help us move towards a circular economy approach. Thereby, it not only protects the nature & environment but it also helps in conserving them for the future generations. Owing to an increase in public awareness and significant effectiveness in recycling operations, recycling rates are increasing.PET recyclate is set to become highly significant owing to numerous factors as Roland Goggel, Sales Director for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland at Stadler explains: "Until recently, there were no specifications for the use of recyclates in manufacturing new products, but this is not the case anymore. The EU has introduced new regulations stipulating that beverage bottles must contain 25 percent recycled content by 2025 and 30 percent by 2030. At least as important as the appearance of new collection and recycling routes for plastic packaging, which together with changes in consumer behavior will give recycling an enormous boost. The plastics manufacturing and processing industry are now showing great interest in recycling, which was not the case in the past. However, the targets set by the EU regulation can only be achieved if all sectors involved in the process work together".PET RECYCLING & ITS ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITSRecycling decreases the environmental impact of the PET industry in numerous ways such as it helps in reducing the use of raw materials. A further improvement has come through more efficient use of materials for the preforms: "Today, the preform for a 1.5 ­ liter PET bottle only weighs around 26.8g ­ considerably less than the 38g of five years ago. The use of regranulate and the more efficient use of materials has resulted in a 66 percent reduction in raw materials in the last five years," explains Roland Goggel.Furthermore, the PET industry is also maximizing transport by converting the preforms into bottles at the filling plant and this helps in decreasing the number to a greater extent, and the number of truck trips from the recycling plant as well. While each truck is capable of transporting 700000 preforms, only 15000 finished PET bottles can be transported using a single truck. The result is a significant cut in fuel use and emissions.THE WAY AHEADWhile East Asia is expected to observe the highest growth trajectory, registering a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 4.6 percent, it is also anticipated to capture a market as huge as Europe by 2030. Also, the developing economies are in the process of joining the race intending to make their presence felt in the international market. With a large number of consumers in these countries and change and improvement in lifestyle is further expected to boost the market growth in the region of East Asia.
< Page 9 | Page 11 >