Japan Consortium Sets Targets for Use of Recycled Plastic in New Cars; Aims for Compliance with Draft EU Regulation

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:41 JST, March 17, 2025

A consortium formed by representatives of industry, government and academia has set a target of using over 15% recycled plastic in the production of cars in Japan in 2031, and over 20% from 2036, it has been learned.

The goal is to encourage the domestic recycling of plastics from the perspective of economic and resource security in response to new regulations to be introduced by the European Union in 2031.

The consortium includes the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc. — of which Toyota Motor Corp. is a member — the Japan ELV Recycler’s Association, the Japan Plastics Industry Federation, the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry, the Environment Ministry and academic experts.

An action plan, which includes the targets, has been decided at a meeting held at the Environment Ministry on Monday.

Plastic is a common material in automobile parts such as bumpers and engine covers, and the amount used in the production of vehicles in Japan can reach 1 million tons per year. However, little progress has so far been made in utilizing recycled plastic. In the future, it will be necessary to be aware of recycling from the design stage in order to increase the proportion of plastic which can be recovered and then recycled.

Based on the action plan, the government intends to support related capital investment and demonstration tests and build a supply chain for recycled plastic among automobile manufacturers, dismantling companies and recycling organizations.

The supply of recycled plastic made from end-of-life vehicle (ELVs) parts is planned to increase to 21,000 tons per year by 2030. By focusing on the use of plastics retrieved from products other than ELVs, the overall supply will be increased to 25,000 tons by 2031 and then will be increased in stages to 157,000 tons in 2036 and 200,000 tons from 2041.

The European Parliament is debating a draft regulation that would require at least 20% of the plastic used in the production of cars to be recycled plastic, which would come into effect as early as 2031. The recycling of plastic scraps from the manufacturing process would be included in the overall percentage. If the consortium’s action plan includes plastic scraps, it is expected to be able to comply with the new regulation.