The German agricultural films recycling initiative Erntekunststoffe Recycling Deutschland (Erde, Bad Homburg / Germany; www.erde-recycling.de) – the acronym “Erde” means “earth” in German – has set a new record. In 2018, 13,433 t of silage stretch films, flat silo films and underlay films were recycled, which is almost twice as much as in the previous year, reports waste management specialist RIGK (Wiesbaden / Germany; www.rigk.de).

The cost advantages for farmers, which continue to apply in 2018, and the increased number of manufacturers, partners and collection points benefiting from the savings have made a major contribution to the higher collection of films. A total of 68 partners operated 408 collection points, which is 86 more than in 2017 – see Plasteurope.com of 26.04.2018. In 2019, the collection network is to be expanded and the number of collection dates increased.

In 2018, the number of film manufacturers participating in Erde grew by three to 11. RPC bpi, Ab Rani Plast, Duo-Plast, Groupe Barbier, Manuli Stretch Deutschland, Polifilm Extrusion, RKW Agri and Trioplast are members of the initiative, and 2018’s entrants are Aspla – Plásticos Españoles, Sotrafa and Coveris Flexibles Austria. Any films manufacturer or distributor supplying the German market can become a member of Erde.

With Germany's plastic packaging association Industrievereinigung Kunststoffverpackungen (IK; Bad Homburg; www.kunststoffverpackungen.de) and in cooperation with RIGK as system operator, Erde organises the collection and recycling of used agricultural films made of LDPE (fraction 1) and LLDPE (fraction 2) by collection partners across Germany. Contractors and farmers collect the plastics used in harvesting, sweep them clean of coarse dirt, bundle them and take them to a collection point. The price offered is determined directly by the respective collection point. Recycling companies then process the collected material into recyclate.