Manufacturers need more than recycled plastic. They need consistency

Renewed conflict in the Middle East threatens to further choke global oil supply, and the prospect of scarce and unaffordable virgin plastic looms large for manufacturers.

“Abundantly available recycled plastic is no longer just a sustainability concern; it’s now the means of survival, provided its quality can meet expected production standards,” says Albie Alberts, Director at Everloop Plastic.

This means recycled plastic should offer not only quality as near to virgin material as possible but also guaranteed consistency across batches, assuring manufacturers of stable production runs.

“This is an opportunity for recyclers to prove that the plastic circular economy is dependable because it does not rely on a single raw material source,” says Alberts.

The importance of batch consistency

To meet their sustainability goals, large manufacturers typically blend 80 percent virgin plastic with 20 percent recycled plastic in their products. This is to reduce the perceived risk of the recycled component weakening the finished structure.

However, high-quality, consistent recycled material allows them to safely increase that volume of recycled content to 50 percent or higher, dramatically lowering raw material costs and increasing profit margins.

The problem arises when this quality fluctuates between batches, casting doubt on consistent material properties across runs.

“Inconsistent recycled plastic can damage injection moulding machines and cause severe production downtime due to clogged nozzles and fouled moulds,” says Alberts.

Plastic recyclers need to adopt a system of transparency to assure buyers they can use recycled plastics with confidence.

Traceability and batch consistency

Quality testing each recycled batch ensures it falls within precise manufacturing parameters, and measuring the variance between batches guarantees uniform quality over time.

After raw incoming materials are inspected and separated to ensure different polymers - like HDPE and polypropylene - are never mixed, each type is processed in separate granulators to prevent cross-contamination.

The resulting flakes are washed, separated and dried before heading to extruders to be pelletised.

Post-extrusion, every batch undergoes testing, such as Melt Flow Index (MFI) testing, to ensure its flow properties closely match those of virgin material.

However, none of these processes are visible to downstream customers who will eventually use the product.

Transparency and accountability

Thousands of informal and semi-formal recycling operations exist in South Africa. Their processing and testing practices often comprise little more than visual and other rudimentary inspections, and they don’t provide any form of quality assurance.

As such, their batch consistency fluctuates and is not suitable for most large-scale manufacturing applications.

Only a handful of pioneering industrial operators use methods like Melt Flow Index testing and technologies like QR codes to prove batch consistency with fully traceable quality records and material profiles.

“Manufacturers can’t and won’t use what they cannot trust, so when recyclers are transparent and offer access to this critical information, they make themselves accountable to their market,” says Alberts.

This demonstrates a level of integrity that establishes them as trusted suppliers.

Responding to the gap

The plastic recycling industry finds itself with an unprecedented opportunity. While manufacturers hesitate to balance their sustainability commitments with product quality, global disruption to oil supply threatens to rob them of their lifeblood.

“Plastic recyclers can fill the gap and establish the plastic circular economy as the norm rather than a fringe sustainability obligation,” says Alberts.

However, their success is not a given. They must win trust through batch consistency, traceability, transparency and accountability.

ENDS