Today, during the General Assembly of European Plastics Converters, Benoît Hennaut, CEO of Herige Group, was elected as the new EuPC President, replacing Renato Zelcher.
EuPC’s GA took place during its annual conference, which was organised this year in cooperation with two Belgian associations, Agoria and Essenscia – PolyMatters.
The annual two-day conference ‘A Circular Future with Plastics’ had to be postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.
More than 150 attendees came together in Brussels, participating in EuPC Divisions and ’Waste Free Oceans’ session, as well as the main conference. According to EuPC, the event, promoted by EuPC, Agoria, and Essenscia – PolyMatters “has shown the industry’s willingness to continue value chain efforts on circularity in order to demonstrate to public authorities the benefits of plastics products to society.”
Speaking after the election, Hennaut said: “It is an honor to have been elected EuPC President for the next 2 years and succeed Renato Zelcher in this position. Ahead of us are years of opportunities and challenges towards the circularity of our plastics industry in Europe. Only through innovation and carbon savings in our industry will we continue to lead this transformation needed.”
Hennaut’s appointment comes at a time of considerable upheaval for the plastics industry.
Pressure from governmental bodies continues to mount. Experts are predicting that the fallout from the European Commission’s Circular Economy Action Plan and the UN’s upcoming treaty on plastic waste could be unprecedented.
And, on a geopolitical level, supply chain shortages, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the sustained effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are all resulting in material shortages and significant price rises.
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