Together with the University of A Coruña Foundation and ANARPLA (National Association of Plastic Recyclers), the company has developed a practical guide to help public administrations incorporate recycled plastic into their procurement processes, turning their purchasing power into an active instrument for market transformation. Public procurement represents around 14% of the EU's GDP and plays a decisive role in achieving the European objective of doubling the circular use rate of materials to 24% by 2030. With the aim of quadrupling the demand for recycled plastic in Europe, Veolia's guide organizes its direct application into eight sectoral sheets: design, construction, and management of office buildings and works; road design projects; urban and office furniture; parks and gardens; cleaning products and services; food and catering services; bins and waste bins, and textile products. With an immediate use format, it includes specific wording, verification instructions, and guidance on how to integrate each clause into the tender documents. Furthermore, it anticipates the minimum recycled content requirements that the future EU Circular Economy Law, expected in 2026, will establish as mandatory.
Waste management is good for the environment and the economy
Veolia, leader in recycling and secondary raw materials, bets on the circular economy and environmental protection. Its management, with two reference plants in Spain, reinforces productive sovereignty and company autonomy
Albert drops the last drop of detergent into the washing machine drawer and pauses to read the label. "EcoPet, 100% recyclable". Later, he thinks, he will take the bottle to the yellow bin. He presses the wash button, collects the rest of the plastics he has accumulated over the weekend, and goes down to the street with the rest of the containers. About to cross the door of his building, he remembers that he left the supermarket tray on the kitchen counter. He is late and has no time to go back. He will take it tomorrow. Every morning, recycling has become a ritual.
Plastic is a staple in every home. Many of the products used are packaged. This raw material has become omnipresent, and recycling it is an environmental, but also economic, necessity. We are talking about secondary raw materials, recycled materials and waste that, after a recovery process, are reintroduced into the production cycle to manufacture new products, replacing virgin natural resources. This process, key to the circular economy and environmental protection, reduces pollution and saves resources, and Veolia is one of its main players.
The Veolia commitment to recycling and secondary raw materials responds to a strategic decision that goes beyond waste management. The action reinforces productive sovereignty and reduces dependence on external resources, contributing to a more resilient economy. Gaining autonomy, competitiveness, and security of supply is one of the objectives in the face of market volatility and the constant evolution of the regulatory framework. Anticipation puts its clients one step ahead and makes Albert separate the containers again, because he knows he can give them a second life.
![The recycling plant that Veolia has in Alcalá de Guadaíra.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 7360 4912"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Technology and innovation at the service of recycling
With two recycling plants in Spain, Veolia maintains its leadership. The multinational, which has been selected for five projects within the PERTE for the Circular Economy, the MITECO call endowed with 150 million euros that has chosen 115 initiatives out of the 201 submitted, with a presence in 14 autonomous communities and an execution period until October 2027, is now working to continue modernizing its facilities. The financing amounts to 9 million euros. In 2025, Veolia processed more than 130,000 tons of material and consolidated itself as a key player in the circular economy value chain.
At the Torremejía plant (Badajoz), a benchmark in PET recycling suitable for food contact, investments will allow for the treatment of plastic types previously difficult to mechanically recycle, such as tray or opaque PET. Furthermore, avenues towards chemical recycling will be explored, and these materials will be prevented from ending up in energy recovery. The improvement of classification, washing, and real-time monitoring systems will also contribute to increasing the quality of the obtained material and minimizing the generation of microplastics. These improvements will help manufacturers and packagers comply with the minimum recycled plastic content objectives established by current legislation, which sets 25% for 2025 and 30% for 2030.
At the Alcalá de Guadaíra and Los Palacios facilities (Seville), focused on industrial, post-consumer, and agricultural plastics, actions will concentrate on improving the properties of polyethylene granules to expand their applicability in sectors such as packaging, as well as optimizing filtration and washing processes for the treatment of plastic waste of agricultural origin.
The activity of both plants is part of a broader value chain in which Veolia accompanies manufacturers and brands from the design of the packaging to its reincorporation into the production cycle. Achieving truly recyclable packaging requires specialized technical knowledge, which is why the company offers its clients eco-design tools, testing at its own facilities, recyclability certifications, and the support of an international network of experts.
Once the recycled material has been obtained, Veolia guarantees that it meets the quality standards required for each application, thus ensuring its commercial viability and return to the market. Albert, who has run out of detergent, will later remember that he has to buy a new one at the supermarket the next day. He may not know that the State is one of the leading countries in Europe in plastic recycling capacity, but he does know that he will again deposit the packaging in the yellow bin. Making it possible for this material to be recovered, transformed, and to have productive and economic value again is part of the work that Veolia drives.
