‘Innovation continues, even when the market is uncertain.’

It is, of course, nothing new that the production and sale of recycling machinery are influenced by the political landscape. For years, manufacturers have been closely monitoring the direction of policy in the Netherlands and, increasingly, across Europe. However, this does not tell the whole story. Evert-Jan Goorman of Stoevelaar Machinery explains that the recycling industry is no longer passively drifting along with political developments: “To some extent, decisions made in The Hague and Brussels determine how willing recyclers are to invest, but there are additional factors at play. As a society, we want to reduce our dependence on fossil resources, which increases the demand for recycled materials. That demand largely exists independently of politics.” In other words, recyclers must continue investing in order to remain competitive, even in uncertain times. “That is simply part of doing business. Moreover, many recyclers have already made significant investments in recent years, and those investments need to be recovered.”