Tata Steel recycles 120 million kilograms of old tin in 2026

‘Can deal’ with scrap suppliers for circular steel production

Summary

Tata Steel Nederland starts using more old food tins and steel beverage cans in the production of steel. This is part of a large-scale recycling operation with the goal of using 120 million kilograms of old food tins and beverage cans by 2026. It concerns a quadrupling compared to 2024, when 30 million kilograms of old tinplate steel were recycled.

foto bij KGF

"Steel recycling is recycling par excellence. Where other materials such as plastic, glass, and aluminium are not infinitely recyclable without a lot of sorting and extra effort, steel is. In fact, lower quality steels can be made even better in terms of quality. We call this "upcycling" in the industry," says Judith Krale, new business manager for scrap at Tata Steel Nederland and responsible for the use of scrap in steel production.

‘Can deal’ contributes to 30% scrap use for green, circular steel

She is often referred to as the woman of 30%, because Krale works every day to achieve the goal of 30% scrap use in the production of cleaner, greener, and circular steel by 2030. This is ambitious, as in 2022 the share of scrap in Tata Steel's steel production was 17%. Krale states: "With new technologies for making green steel, we can also recycle more steel. So, we are always looking for more scrap, including packaging tin." To achieve this, Tata Steel Nederland has signed agreements with ten scrap companies in multiple countries: the Nederland, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The majority of the tinplate scrap in this 'can deal' comes from the United Kingdom, as that country has been engaged in waste separation for a longer period and is therefore further ahead in waste separation than the Netherlands and its neighboring countries.

Increased steel density for a more sustainable end product

At Tata Steel Nederland, the old steel, to-be-recycled tin is called 'tin can shred' because the steel cans are crushed in a kind of industrial mincer and flattened into small pieces, with a higher steel density. This has the advantage that its processing in the Oxy Steel Plant is more efficient, which in turn contributes to a more sustainable end product.

Steel cans are the recycling champion of the Netherlands

In addition to the many advantages of steel food packaging, such as long shelf life (even outside the refrigerator) and therefore less food waste, steel cans are not only easily recyclable but also relatively easy and inexpensive to separate from other waste due to their magnetic properties. In the Netherlands, steel packaging is therefore the 'recycling champion'. Almost 95% of the packaging steel used in the Netherlands is recycled into new steel. This includes beverage and food cans, aerosol cans, and paint cans. Tinplate is therefore the most recycled packaging material.