Portugal has become the latest country to join the “Plastics Pact” network, a platform launched in 2018 by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF, Cowes / UK; www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org) to exchange learning and best practices to accelerate the transition to a circular economy. Joining Chile, France, the Netherlands, South Africa and the UK, the “Portuguese Plastics Pact” is led by non-profit organisation Smart Waste Portugal (Porto; www.smartwasteportugal.com) and supported by the country’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Action, Ministry of Economy and Ministry of the Sea.

Currently, the Portuguese Plastics Pact has 25 members, including major food and beverage retailers and recycling companies. In addition, the pact is supported by another 30 organisations that include universities, NGOs, business associations and the aforementioned ministries.

Members have committed to targets for 2025. These include the following:

• defining a list of problematic or unnecessary single-use plastic items along with measures for their elimination by the end of 2020
• ensuring that 100% of plastic packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable
• recycling at least 70% of plastic packaging
• incorporating an average of 30% recycled plastics in new packaging

The Portuguese Plastics Pact said it will set up a roadmap to drive action towards the targets and will release a progress report annually. “This collaborative initiative will play a fundamental role in ensuring the responsible, sustainable and circular use of plastics in Portugal, allowing to extract the maximum value from this material without comprising the environment,” said Smart Waste Portugal’s president, Aires Pereira.