Trinseo to set up recycled food-contact polystyrene plant in the Netherlands

Plastics producer Trinseo is to build a polystyrene recycling plant in the Netherlands focused on food-contact materials, alongside circular business innovations company GMP, with a planned start-up in 2024, the company said June 30.

The agreement between the two companies aims at providing a pretreatment or regeneration plant with a minimum 25,000 mt capacity in the Netherlands. The plant will take waste polystyrene and process it to produce recycled polystyrene pellets, using the "Super Clean" recycling process.

This process uses a high-temperature wash, a gas wash and a chemical wash and was originally developed for decontamination of post-consumer PET for direct food contact.

There is also an intended execution of a long-term tolling and off-taking agreement.

"This collaboration shows our continuous efforts in sustainability marching toward our 2030 sustainability goals," said Trinseo Senior Vice President, Plastics and Feedstocks Nicolas Joly.