Precious Plastic in numbers
Precious Plastic is a project that shares, free and open source, the blueprints and know-how for machines that shred, melt and remake plastic waste into new products in small workspaces. This page sets out the numbers for Precious Plastic workspaces and community worldwide, taken from Precious Plastic's own publications, together with the numbers for the activity in Karatsu. In the 2024 impact report, 184 responding organisations recycled 1,400 tonnes of plastic in one year.
This page was compiled by Karatsu Farm & Food as part of the Karatsu Data Bank. It lists only the figures and statements found in the sources, without conclusions or evaluation. All worldwide figures are self-reported totals published by Precious Plastic (the Precious Plastic Foundation, a non-profit in the Netherlands) and related organisations; they are not government or international statistics. Because the number of respondents differs from year to year, the years are not combined into one table for comparison. No values have been read from graphics.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2012 | Dave Hakkens starts prototyping as part of his studies at the Design Academy Eindhoven |
| 2013 | Version 1 put online during his graduation show |
| 2014 | Three people independently replicate the V1 machines |
| 2015 | A "10K" award (currency not stated) funds further machine development |
| Early 2016 | Version 2 released |
| 2017 | Hundreds of people start recycling in South Korea, Colombia, Kenya, Germany, Mexico, Taiwan, Sri Lanka and elsewhere. Version 3 (a workspace inside a shipping container and new techniques) released late in the year |
| 2018 | Famae award of EUR 300,000, all allocated to Version 4; a team of 40-50 people works on it for 1.5 years |
| January 2020 | Version 4 (the Precious Plastic Universe) released: 8 starter kits, 3 Pro machines, 30+ tutorial videos, a sheetpress and business models |
| 2020 | First impact report |
| 2023 | Precious Plastic Foundation set up as a non-profit in the Netherlands |
| 2024 | Financial problems of the organisation shared with the community |
| 2025 | Version 5 plan written and crowdfunding launched |
| 2026 | Membership programme introduced |
How Precious Plastic developed
Dave Hakkens started Precious Plastic in 2012 as part of his studies at the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Version 1 went online in 2013, and Version 4 in January 2020 brought together 8 starter kits, 3 Pro machines and more than 30 tutorial videos. The Precious Plastic Foundation was set up in 2023; in 2024 the organisation shared its financial problems with the community, in 2025 it launched crowdfunding for Version 5, and in 2026 it introduced memberships (Precious Plastic timeline).
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Countries of responding organisations | 56 | "about 30% of all countries on the planet" |
| Plastic recycled | 1,400 tonnes | one year (written "1.400 Tons") |
| Revenue | over USD 3.7 million | total of the 184 responding organisations; highest USD 500k, average "25k/yr" |
| Employees | 530 | |
| Volunteers | 3,405 | |
| Machines built | 1,175 | built and sold in one year by the 184 organisations |
The 2024 impact report
In Precious Plastic's 2024 impact report (Impact 2024), organisations from 56 countries responded, and together they recycled 1,400 tonnes of plastic in one year. The 184 responding organisations had total revenue of over USD 3.7 million, 530 employees and 3,405 volunteers, and built and sold 1,175 machines in the year.
The same page says the 184 respondents are part of 2,014 organisations registered on the Community Map, that the report shows "only 9% of the actual Precious Plastic community impact", that "we depend on the workspaces to add their data" and "don't have the manpower to audit it", and that "this data isn't the most accurate". The homepage (homepage) gives "3,935 people involved" for 2024, which equals the 530 employees plus 3,405 volunteers (our calculation).
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Countries of respondents | 107 | "about 60%" |
| Plastic recycled | 595,400 tonnes | written "595.400 Tons"; the text says "595-THOUSANDS-TONS" |
| Revenue | over USD 36 million | total of the 527 organisations; highest USD 1 million, average "80k/yr" |
| Employees | 6,441 | |
| Volunteers | 11,510 | |
| Machines built | 1,881 | built and sold in 2022 |
Figures for 2022 (2023 impact report)
The 2023 impact report (Impact 2023) gives, for 2022, 107 countries, 595,400 tonnes recycled, revenue of over USD 36 million, 6,441 employees, 11,510 volunteers and 1,881 machines built. The amount recycled is written "595.400 Tons" and described in the text as "595-THOUSANDS-TONS". The same page estimates that it covers "about 40-50%" of the real impact. Because the number of respondents differs from the 2020 survey (about 540 tonnes) and the 2024 report (1,400 tonnes), these are not placed in the same table on this page.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Recycled per workspace | 1,200 kg a year (100 kg a month) |
| Team size | average 5 (one third women) |
| People under 30 | over 50% |
| Annual revenue (total) | EUR 2,025,323 (EUR 4,500 per workspace a year) |
| Start-up investment (total) | over EUR 4.95 million (EUR 11,000 per workspace) |
| Profitable workspaces | 10% |
| Financially sustainable workspaces | 21% |
| Workspaces with a shredder | 79.6% |
| Workspaces with an injection machine | 57.1% |
| Workspaces with an extrusion machine | 50.2% |
| Age of projects | over 5 years 6%, 2-5 years 22%, 1-2 years 30%, under 1 year 42% |
The 2020 survey
Precious Plastic ran its first Global Impact Survey in March 2020, with more than 1,000 respondents including workspaces, recyclers, collectors and machine builders (One Army). According to the article, each workspace recycled 1,200 kg a year on average with a team of 5; 10% of workspaces were profitable and 21% financially sustainable. 79.6% of workspaces had a shredder, 57.1% an injection machine and 50.2% an extrusion machine, and PP (polypropylene) and HDPE (high-density polyethylene) were the most recycled plastics.
The article gives the amount recycled in two ways: "376 176 Kg" in the graphic heading and "over 540 000 kgs" a year in the text.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Projects documented in the library | 250+ |
| Library downloads | 287,336 |
| Registered users | 40,366 |
| Registered workspaces (approved pins on the Community Map) | 1,196 |
The online community
Precious Plastic runs a free online community with an Academy for learning to build the machines, a Library where workspaces share their projects, and a Community Map of workspaces. As of July 2026 it had 40,366 registered users, 287,336 library downloads and 1,196 registered workspaces on the map (Precious Plastic). The text of the same page says "nearly 1,200" as of June 2026.
Figures stated in a 2020 application
In its application to the MIT Solve Rethink Plastics Challenge (MIT Solve, updated 2 September 2020), Precious Plastic stated 350 registered workspaces, about 1,000 machine builders, 12,000 people registered on its map, 80,000 forum members, 250 sellers on its marketplace (the Bazar), and EUR 200,000 in Bazar transactions in 2019 (with a 5% fee). In 2019 it had 2 paid staff and around 112 volunteers.
| Item | One figure | Another figure |
|---|---|---|
| Amount recycled in the 2020 survey | Graphic heading "376 176 Kg" (One Army) | Text "over 540 000 kgs" a year (same article) |
| Number of responding organisations for 2022 | 527 (Impact 2023, text) | 526 (lower part of the same page) |
| Amount recycled by year | 595,400 tonnes in 2022 (Impact 2023) | about 540 tonnes in 2020 (One Army); 1,400 tonnes in 2024 (Impact 2024) |
| Number of workspaces | Homepage "1,100 Workspaces" (noted as based on 2024 impact data) | 184 respondents and 2,014 registered on the map (Impact 2024); 1,196 map pins in July 2026 |
Where the sources give different figures
Some items appear with different values in Precious Plastic's own sources. This page does not choose one; both are listed as written. The number of workspaces differs depending on whether it counts survey respondents, map registrations or the homepage figure.
| Item | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| PET bottle caps collected (from homes, schools and beaches) | 3,026 kg | cumulative, April 2026 |
| Participants in plastic recycling workshops | 13,482 | cumulative, April 2026 |
| Custom injection machines provided | 2 (Precious Plastic Miyajima in Miyajima, Hiroshima; Hitachi Academy Co., Ltd.) | October 2026 |
Precious Plastic in Karatsu
Karatsu Farm & Food runs Precious Plastic Karatsu in Karatsu, Saga Prefecture, making products from PET bottle caps collected from homes, schools and beaches. The caps are washed by our staff, volunteers and a welfare facility, shredded on a borrowed shredder, and moulded on our self-built injection machine, with moulds made by a factory. We have collected 3,026 kg of PET bottle caps, and 13,482 people have taken part in our plastic recycling workshops (both cumulative, as of April 2026).
We provide our custom injection machine to organisations that have visited our site in Karatsu and share the purpose of the work. So far we have provided it to two: Precious Plastic Miyajima in Miyajima, Hiroshima, and Hitachi Academy Co., Ltd. (Precious Plastic Karatsu). Information on Precious Plastic in Japan is available from the Precious Plastic Japan Team (https://preciousplasticjapan.com/).
FAQ
Q1. What is Precious Plastic?
Precious Plastic is a project that shares, free and open source, the blueprints and know-how for machines that shred, melt and remake plastic waste into new products in small workspaces. Dave Hakkens started it in 2012 while studying at the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands, and the Precious Plastic Foundation, a Dutch non-profit, was set up in 2023 (Precious Plastic timeline).
Q2. How much plastic do Precious Plastic workspaces recycle worldwide?
In the 2024 impact report, the 184 responding organisations recycled 1,400 tonnes in one year. The figure covers only the organisations that answered; Precious Plastic itself writes that it shows "only 9% of the actual Precious Plastic community impact" out of 2,014 organisations registered on its map, and that the data "isn't the most accurate".
Q3. How many Precious Plastic workspaces are there?
The Precious Plastic Community Map had 1,196 registered workspaces (approved pins) as of July 2026. The 2024 impact report refers to 2,014 organisations registered on the map, so the number depends on the date and on what is counted.
Q4. Do Precious Plastic workspaces make money?
In the 2024 impact report, the 184 responding organisations had total revenue of over USD 3.7 million, with the highest-earning organisation at USD 500k. In the 2020 survey (One Army), 10% of workspaces were profitable and 21% were financially sustainable. Both are self-reported.
Q5. Is there Precious Plastic activity in Japan and Karatsu?
Information on Precious Plastic in Japan is available from the Precious Plastic Japan Team (https://preciousplasticjapan.com/). In Karatsu, Karatsu Farm & Food runs Precious Plastic Karatsu, making products from collected PET bottle caps; it has collected 3,026 kg of caps (cumulative, as of April 2026).
Sources
| Source | Publisher | Date | URL | Accessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precious Plastic Mission (timeline) | Precious Plastic Foundation | not stated | https://preciousplastic.com/about/mission | 2026-10-17 |
| Precious Plastic Impact 2024 | Precious Plastic Foundation | not stated | https://preciousplastic.com/results/2024 | 2026-10-17 |
| Precious Plastic (homepage) | Precious Plastic Foundation | not stated | https://www.preciousplastic.com/ | 2026-10-17 |
| Precious Plastic Impact 2023 (figures for 2022) | Precious Plastic Foundation | not stated | https://preciousplastic.com/impact/2023 | 2026-10-17 |
| Discover the Impact Precious Plastic Is Having Around the World | One Army | 2020-06-28 | https://www.onearmy.earth/news/precious-plastic-impact | 2026-10-17 |
| The Precious Plastic Online Community | Precious Plastic Foundation | 2026-07 | https://preciousplastic.com/our-solutions/community-platform | 2026-10-17 |
| Precious Plastic (Rethink Plastics Challenge application) | MIT Solve | 2020-09-02 (updated) | https://solve.mit.edu/solutions/15640 | 2026-10-17 |
What this page does not cover
Country and continent graphics in the impact reports (images without values), results of individual workspaces, the Precious Plastic Foundation's finances and the Version 5 crowdfunding amount are not covered. Effects of Precious Plastic and comparisons or evaluations against other ways of recycling are not covered. The Karatsu figures are limited to Precious Plastic Karatsu and do not include our other projects. Values that could not be confirmed in a primary source are not included.
About this page
Compiled by Hiroaki Kojima (Vice Director, Karatsu Farm & Food) / Contact: info@karatsu-f-f.com (contact form) / Published: October 17, 2026 / Markdown: en/precious-plastic-data.mdThis page is made together with AI. See this data bank and AI for how.
Top photo: Precious Plastic (Stichting One Army), from the Precious Plastic Download Kit (V4.1), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped by Karatsu Farm & Food; the cropped photo is also licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related links
▶ Karatsu Data Bank
▶ Plastics in Numbers
▶ Precious Plastic Karatsu
▶ Precious Plastic の数字（日本語）