Never before has such a large amount of material been sent for recycling from Hampiðjan Iceland as in 2024 — approximately 1,294 tons. The volume has increased year by year, from around 500 tons in 2021.
Hampiðjan has long accepted used fishing gear from its customers, sorted it, and sent it for recycling, mainly to Denmark and Lithuania. There, the materials are shredded, washed, and melted down to produce plastic pellets used in the manufacture of new products. Hampiðjan’s main recycling partners are Plastix in Denmark and Polivektris in Lithuania, in addition to the Norwegian company Nofir, which specializes in recycling fishing gear.
In addition, a considerable amount of material arises at the netlofts during the production and repair of fishing gear. This material is sorted, and clean polyethylene (PE), mainly trawl netting, is sent to Hampidjan Baltic in Lithuania. There, it is shredded, melted, and transformed into new plastic pellets, which are blended with virgin material at a ratio of up to 10%.
The largest portion of the recycled material was nylon — around 379 tons — followed by approximately 250 tons of rockhopper rubber and just over 146 tons of polyethylene. A significant amount of metal, about 159 tons, was also sent for recycling, along with 103 tons of pelagic trawl ropes. Smaller amounts of other materials were also recycled. The share of non-recyclable material amounted to 170 tons last year — only about 13% of all collected material.
Responsibility in the Circular Economy
“Hampiðjan is continuously working to find solutions for non-recyclable materials, such as mixed-fiber ropes, which currently can only be used for energy recovery. We place strong emphasis on sustainability in our operations through recycling and reusing materials,” says Georg Haney, Environmental Manager at Hampiðjan.
