Trends in trade flows across the life cycle of plastics: Preliminary Review

This briefing note provides a preliminary review of global trade flows across the entire plastics life cycle, from feedstocks and chemical additives to finished products and waste, to inform international negotiations on plastic pollution.

• In 2021, the global plastics trade reached a value of at least $1.2 trillion, which accounts for approximately 5% of all global trade.
• Current classifications of trade flows used for official statistics restrict the transparency of trade throughout the plastics life cycle, which has significant consequences for policymaking aimed at ending global plastic pollution.
• Governments involved in the Basel Convention, the World Trade Organization Dialogue on Plastics Pollution, and United Nations negotiations for a global plastics treaty have emphasized the need for better transparency regarding the material composition of internationally traded products and trade flows across the plastics life cycle.

APA

C., D. B., D., B., M., S., C., B., & L., S. C. R. (2023). Trends in trade flows across the life cycle of plastics: Preliminary Review. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs. https://tessforum.org/latest/trends-in-trade-flows-across-the-life-cycle-of-plastics-preliminary-review

Chicago

C., Deere Birkbeck,, Barrowclough, D., Sugathan, M., Bellmann, C., and Souza Campos Rodrigues, L. Trends in trade flows across the life cycle of plastics: Preliminary Review. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs, 2023. https://tessforum.org/latest/trends-in-trade-flows-across-the-life-cycle-of-plastics-preliminary-review.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=C. |first1=Deere Birkbeck, |last2=D. |first2=Barrowclough, |last3=M. |first3=Sugathan, |last4=C. |first4=Bellmann, |last5=L. |first5=Souza Campos Rodrigues, |title=Trends in trade flows across the life cycle of plastics: Preliminary Review |publisher=Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs |date=25 May 2023 |url=https://tessforum.org/latest/trends-in-trade-flows-across-the-life-cycle-of-plastics-preliminary-review |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{c2023trends, author = {C., Deere Birkbeck, and D., Barrowclough, and M., Sugathan, and C., Bellmann, and L., Souza Campos Rodrigues,}, title = {{Trends in trade flows across the life cycle of plastics: Preliminary Review}}, institution = {Forum on Trade, Environment, \& the SDGs}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://tessforum.org/latest/trends-in-trade-flows-across-the-life-cycle-of-plastics-preliminary-review}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }