An alliance of the chemical, plastics and recycling industries is urging the German government to take swift political action in an open letter.

The broad cross-sector alliance, comprising the associations BDE Bundesverband der Deutschen Entsorgungs-, Wasser- und Kreislaufwirtschaft (Federal Association of the German Waste Management, Water and Circular Economy), bvse Bundesverband Sekundärrohstoffe und Entsorgung (Federal Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Waste Management), GKV Gesamtverband Kunststoffverarbeitende Industrie (General Association of the Plastics Processing Industry), Plastics Europe Deutschland (PED) and the VCI Verband der Chemischen Industrie (Federation of German Chemical Industries), warns that without this “booster”, Germany faces the threat of industrial decline and job losses. The appeal comes ahead of the publication, announced for 6 May 2026, of an action programme for the implementation of the National Circular Economy Strategy (NKWS).
 
The background to this urgent call for swift action is the economic situation of the German plastics and recycling industry, which is deemed to be dire.
According to the associations, high energy, raw material and bureaucratic costs are placing a massive strain on domestic production. Many facilities, they say, have not been operating at profitable capacity for years. Despite the tense situation, the alliance is not calling for a retreat, but for greater momentum in the transition towards a climate-neutral, circular industry. The participating organisations see this as a matter of industrial survival: the circular economy ensures value creation, resilience and innovation, and creates skilled jobs. The alliance is calling for a portion of the €100 billion special fund for infrastructure and climate neutrality to be channelled specifically into circular economy and research infrastructure, in order to enable the scaling up of technologies and thus the circular business case. Furthermore, to strengthen the industry, the industrial electricity tariff should be extended to recyclers. A corresponding report by the consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which reaches the same conclusion, has already been submitted to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE).
 
The associations propose specific measures for the ‘transformation booster’. These include:

• clear political framework conditions – such as binding recycled content quotas, targeted financial incentives for recyclable packaging (Section 26 of the Packaging Act) and a legally secure level playing field for mechanically and chemically recycled raw materials,
• investment in modern, AI-based collection, sorting and recycling technologies, including mechanical and chemical processes,
• the introduction of extended depreciation models for investments,
• the continuation of CO₂ differential contracts beyond the second tendering process to promote future technologies for the circular economy,
• the platform announced in the National Circular Economy Strategy (NKWS) to connect all stakeholders for transformation and innovation promotion in the industry.

In their joint appeal, the organisations emphasise: “Germany needs the circular economy. Yet the German plastics and recycling industry is at a crossroads. Without decisive political signals, an erosion of industrial value creation and jobs is imminent. The sectors are making a significant contribution to solving the enormous challenges facing the German economy. Now is the time to provide powerful impetus to trigger investment in the climate-neutral circular economy and thereby accelerate the transformation process.”
 
Sources:

• Press release BDE, bvse, GKV, PED, VCI (23.4.2026)
• Image: AI-generated stock image (Byteserv)