Plastic waste exports by the EU-27 2015-2021, by destination

Turkey was the largest destination for EU-27 exports of plastic waste in 2021, with a volume of 395,000 metric tons. For many years the main destination for EU plastic waste was China. However, in 2018 China introduced its "National Sword" policy, which banned the import of several types of waste, including plastics. This saw EU-27 exports to China drop from 1.4 million metric tons in 2015 to less than 1,000 metric tons by 2021.
As a result of these restrictions, total plastic waste exports from EU member states have fallen almost 60 percent since peaking in 2014.