Recycling in Mexico

July 25, 2021 was a very special day for the German family-owned company Stadler Anlagenbau: Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, representative of the city government of Mexico City, and Gautier Mignot, ambassador of the European Union delegation, inaugurated the largest and most modern recycling plant in Latin America.

The high-tech waste separation technology comes from Stadler, which have been active in the Mexican market with a Brazilian subsidiary and are now also a customer of German Centre Mexico with the founding of a Mexican subsidiary. “Initially, we received inquiries from Mexico through our company in the USA,” said CEO Willi Stadler.

“Through the first projects, we saw the business potential in Mexico and realized that it was worth establishing a sales office there.” The new plant creates 400 jobs and processes 1,000 tons of household waste from the mega metropolis daily. Each ton of recycled plastic saves between 1.5 and 3.2 tons of greenhouse gases compared to new plastic.

In a city where 12,000 tons of household waste are generated daily, the new plant with its “made in Germany” technology fits precisely into the concept of the city government to become more sustainable and reduce emissions. The German-Mexican Chamber of Industry and Commerce (CAMEXA) estimates the potential of the recycling sector at a volume of more than three billion dollars.

Although Mexico is one of the pioneers in Latin America with nearly 1.9 million tons of recycled plastic waste, there is still much work to be done to sensitize the population and companies to environmental and climate protection. In the German Centre Mexico, a small cluster of German companies has come together in recent years who, like Stadler, want to contribute to a sustainable circular economy.

“For Heidelberg and our industry, the packaging sector is one of the most important drivers of global economic development. Here, integrating sustainable packaging solutions and regulated waste management in the various areas clearly benefits environmental protection,” says René de Villa, sales manager of Heidelberg Mexico.

Willi Stadler assumes that he can continuously grow his company in the Mexican market. He has made good experiences so far and emphasizes the hospitality of the Mexican population, well-trained workers, and the reliability of his local partners.

“At the beginning of our project in Cuautla de Morelos, we had a great experience with our client. He invited us to visit the landfill. Together with the advisor of LBBW Mexico, who financed the project, he loaded us onto the loading area of his truck and we inspected the site and the material for our new plant.”

When asked for advice for German SMEs considering entering the Mexican market, he answered without hesitation: “The German Centre is a good starting point! Together with CAMEXA, you can get really good information there, have good conversations, and exchange experiences. That helps to overcome the fear of market entry. The market has potential, certainly also for many other industries.”