24 May 2022

Close the Glass Loop welcomes the launch of Vidro+

PRESS RELEASE

Close the Glass Loop welcomes the launch of Vidro+, a milestone towards the acceleration of glass collection and recycling in Portugal.

Promoted and coordinated by the Smart Waste Portugal Association (ASWP), the collaborative initiative brings together the glass packaging value chain as well as government entities, universities and research centres, associations and non-governmental organizations. Together they will develop and implement tailored solutions for glass collection which work in the Portuguese context and contribute to the ambitious target of collecting 90% of all glass packaging placed on the EU market by 2030.

With 56% collection for recycling rate in 2019, Portugal is below the EU average of 78% and one of the EU Member States with the most potential for collecting and recycling glass packaging. It is also the European country with the highest glass production per capita, almost 4 times higher than its consumption needs, making it critical to improve the collection of glass packaging to meet the need for recycled glass.

“Close the Glass Loop is a decentralised programme, and we are very pleased to see that the Portuguese National Platform is developing into a comprehensive multi-stakeholder initiative on the national level that will roll out an Action Plan that is tailored to the specificities of Portugal. We look forward to cooperating with Vidro+ and its members, and facilitating the exchange of best practices between the Platform and our other 10 Close the Glass Loop National Platforms to ensure we collect glass more and better”

says Adeline Farrelly, Secretary General of FEVE (Federation of European manufacturers of glass containers), on behalf of Close the Glass Loop partners.