Sustainable End-of-Life Options for Plastics in New Zealand

3.3.3 Forms of End-Market Material
The form of end-market recovered plastic material varied, depending on the national or international
demand.
The main plastic end-market material forms 23 were:
• baled
• flaked
• granulated
•ground
• pelletised, or
• in another form.
Non-coloured plastic has a higher value and therefore is kept separate from coloured material. The
reason for this is that it is too expensive and difficult to remove its colour, and cheaper/easier to add
more; therefore more colour (mainly black pigment) is added to plastic when it is recycled.
As a result, most exported material was separated into coloured and mixed coloured material before
being baled. Types of bales were commonly categorized as PET soft drink bottles, HDPE milk bottles
and HDPE janitorial grade. There was only one known commercial recycling company that washed
recovered material before exporting.
3.3.4 Prices for End-Market Material
As of July 2005, prices for PET and HDPE end-market material 24 , (i.e. material purchased from
commercial recycling companies for export,) were as follows:
• baled non-coloured PET had an end market commercial price of $500-550/t
• baled coloured PET was $350/t
• flaked PET was sought for $550-600/t
• HDPE baled milk bottles were priced at $400-450/t
• pelletised HDPE was $600/t, and
• janitorial-grade HDPE fetched $250/t.
Prices for other materials such as LDPE and PVC were not specified.
3.4 Key Points
• The majority of plastic was recovered from post-consumer industrial, followed by post-consumer
domestic, and pre-consumer industrial sources.
• Most of the NZ population had access to recycling in 2004.
• There are over 38 commercial recyclers operating in NZ.
• 59 of the 74 councils funded recycling schemes in their regions in 2004
• Recovered material was mainly exported (to Asia) due to limited onshore NZ recycling facilities and
the availability of labour.
• The majority of recovered material was baled in its original form and exported.
• The end-market price for non-coloured plastic was greater than for coloured plastic; similarly the
price for flaked and pelletised material was greater than for baled products.
• More information is needed on the source and quantity of material not being recovered.
23. Refer to Appendix 2.8 for definitions of the listed material forms
24. Source: Undisclosed commercial recycler
Current NZ Infrastructure for Recovery and End Markets
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