Today, 76% of glass packaging placed on the EU market is collected for recycling. Close the Glass Loop is a bottom-up, collaborative, public-private partnership aimed to unite the glass collection and recycling value chain, and to establish a material stewardship programme that will result in more bottle-to-bottle recycling. Its objective is to achieve an average of 90% collection rate of used glass packaging at EU level by 2030 and a better quality of recycled glass.

Close the glass loop brings together the whole value chain together

• from glass producers, to brand owners and fillers, to consumers and glass treaters, via the Extended Producer Responsibility and waste management schemes, collectors and municipalities
• at European and national level with a common goal.

Close the glass loop:

• promotes selective collection of glass packaging to increase the quality of untreated cullet (waste glass)
• optimises and develops sorting and treating systems to increase yields, even from poor collection systems and generate more furnace-ready cullet; and
• exchanges knowledge and best practice on collection, sorting and treatment systems between countries.