Import/export HS code 3915: Plastic waste and scraps
Leftover or discarded plastic materials, including trimmings and scraps, ready for recycling
Why this is important if you are looking for potential customers in the UK:
- It helps you understand the market size for your product in the UK.
- It provides you with a list of potential leads who have bought similar products.
* UK only, last 24 months analysed
Imports by country
What this shows: Import market volume by exporter country into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 37,268,671 |
| Netherlands | 11,257,433 |
| Germany | 9,116,810 |
| Belgium | 7,122,498 |
| China | 7,068,654 |
Countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month volume, right side by second 12-month volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 18,488,602 | 18,780,069 | +291,467 |
| Netherlands | 7,013,489 | 4,243,944 | -2,769,545 |
| Germany | 4,667,023 | 4,449,787 | -217,236 |
| Belgium | 3,814,584 | 3,307,914 | -506,670 |
| China | 1,810,456 | 5,258,198 | +3,447,742 |
| Nigeria | 3,335,820 | 3,441,344 | +105,524 |
| Israel | 3,635,485 | 602,036 | -3,033,449 |
| United Arab Emirates | 342,806 | 3,279,096 | +2,936,290 |
| France | 1,124,792 | 1,013,180 | -111,612 |
| United States | 627,475 | 276,479 | -350,996 |
Imports by country of origin
What this shows: Import volume by production origin country. Differences from exporter-country data can indicate re-export routes.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 36,827,342 |
| Netherlands | 9,950,705 |
| Germany | 9,808,288 |
| Nigeria | 8,803,088 |
| China | 7,291,013 |
Country of origin rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 18,438,545 | 18,388,797 | -49,748 |
| Netherlands | 6,505,488 | 3,445,217 | -3,060,271 |
| Germany | 5,143,299 | 4,664,989 | -478,310 |
| Nigeria | 3,335,820 | 5,467,268 | +2,131,448 |
| China | 1,930,263 | 5,360,750 | +3,430,487 |
| Belgium | 3,260,409 | 3,328,838 | +68,429 |
| Israel | 3,599,229 | 602,036 | -2,997,193 |
| France | 1,508,431 | 1,371,910 | -136,521 |
| United Arab Emirates | 341,549 | 1,199,844 | +858,295 |
| United States | 640,133 | 368,911 | -271,222 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 14 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 10 |
| Inner London - West | 9 |
| West Yorkshire | 9 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 8 |
UK regions rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: UK regions are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month importer count, right side by second 12-month importer count, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| UK region | First 12m | Second 12m | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 10 | 7 | -3 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 7 | 8 | +1 |
| Inner London - West | 4 | 5 | +1 |
| West Yorkshire | 8 | 5 | -3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 4 | 8 | +4 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | 7 | 6 | -1 |
| Cheshire | 4 | 6 | +2 |
| Lancashire | 3 | 6 | +3 |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 5 | 2 | -3 |
| Merseyside | 4 | 3 | -1 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 48,727,812 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 47,039,488 |
| Air transport | 1,307,790 |
| Other | 396,049 |
| Road transport | 13,277 |
Transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 24,289,783 | 24,438,029 | +148,246 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 24,006,833 | 23,032,655 | -974,178 |
| Air transport | 564,206 | 743,584 | +179,378 |
| Other | 43,754 | 352,295 | +308,541 |
| Road transport | 10,029 | 3,248 | -6,781 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Heysham | 26,136,716 |
| London Gateway Port | 16,531,706 |
| Immingham Docks | 15,361,975 |
| Felixstowe | 9,377,071 |
| Liverpool Docks | 8,262,944 |
Port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heysham | 12,017,648 | 14,119,068 | +2,101,420 |
| London Gateway Port | 7,490,341 | 9,041,365 | +1,551,024 |
| Immingham Docks | 7,964,418 | 7,397,557 | -566,861 |
| Felixstowe | 4,403,815 | 4,973,256 | +569,441 |
| Liverpool Docks | 5,015,074 | 3,247,870 | -1,767,204 |
| Dover | 2,401,124 | 3,220,693 | +819,569 |
| Hull | 3,151,527 | 1,480,291 | -1,671,236 |
| Holyhead | 1,141,392 | 565,297 | -576,095 |
| Eurotunnel | 890,874 | 761,452 | -129,422 |
| Southampton | 338,633 | 1,255,083 | +916,450 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Manufacture of rubber and plastic products | 40 |
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 34 |
| Waste collection, treatment and disposal activities; materials recovery | 29 |
| Remediation activities and other waste management services. | 10 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 10 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2025-11 | 48 |
| 2025-10 | 45 |
| 2025-09 | 41 |
| 2025-08 | 38 |
| 2025-07 | 35 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| HODGE CLEMCO LIMITED | 105 |
| BRITISH POLYTHENE INDUSTRIES LIMITED | 67 |
| POLYRAM U.K. LIMITED | 54 |
| CARPENTER LIMITED | 47 |
| FORBO FLOORING UK LIMITED | 46 |
| INTERFLOOR LIMITED | 41 |
| LINPAC PACKAGING LIMITED | 38 |
| RECYCLE FOR FUTURE LTD | 38 |
| JSP LIMITED | 36 |
| WRC RECYCLING LIMITED | 30 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 64 |
| 54m+ | 47 |
| 15m-54m | 22 |
| 0-1m | 17 |
| Other | 12 |
Import seasonality
What this shows: Average monthly import pattern from historical data.
Exports by country
What this shows: Export market volume by destination country from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 59,168,181 |
| Turkey | 58,545,735 |
| Germany | 26,213,116 |
| Spain | 21,311,399 |
| Italy | 19,256,477 |
Export countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Destination countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export volume, right side by second 12-month export volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 28,476,530 | 30,691,651 | +2,215,121 |
| Turkey | 36,111,167 | 22,434,568 | -13,676,599 |
| Germany | 15,104,738 | 11,108,378 | -3,996,360 |
| Spain | 11,502,005 | 9,809,394 | -1,692,611 |
| Italy | 11,196,144 | 8,060,333 | -3,135,811 |
| Belgium | 9,326,363 | 8,502,582 | -823,781 |
| France | 7,980,818 | 9,120,711 | +1,139,893 |
| Malaysia | 7,449,361 | 6,485,823 | -963,538 |
| Portugal | 5,286,999 | 5,783,704 | +496,705 |
| Indonesia | 1,221,334 | 6,546,530 | +5,325,196 |
Exports by country of origin
What this shows: Export volume by production origin country. For re-exports, indicates where goods originated before UK export.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| XI | 1,651,612 |
| Ireland | 41,632 |
| Germany | 2,075 |
| XU | 10 |
Export origin countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| XI | 817,157 | 834,455 | +17,298 |
| Ireland | 5,916 | 35,716 | +29,800 |
| Germany | 0 | 2,075 | +2,075 |
| XU | 10 | 0 | -10 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 159,584,269 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 136,382,941 |
| Other | 1,695,329 |
| Air transport | 561,863 |
| Road transport | 13,427 |
Export transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 95,015,553 | 64,568,716 | -30,446,837 |
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 59,771,210 | 76,611,731 | +16,840,521 |
| Other | 823,083 | 872,246 | +49,163 |
| Air transport | 220,160 | 341,703 | +121,543 |
| Road transport | 13,427 | 0 | -13,427 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Immingham Docks | 55,451,919 |
| Felixstowe | 52,015,952 |
| London Gateway Port | 44,440,626 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 31,029,398 |
| London | 25,824,989 |
Export port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Immingham Docks | 26,623,756 | 28,828,163 | +2,204,407 |
| Felixstowe | 28,145,043 | 23,870,909 | -4,274,134 |
| London Gateway Port | 21,416,035 | 23,024,591 | +1,608,556 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 16,074,005 | 14,955,393 | -1,118,612 |
| London | 12,932,810 | 12,892,179 | -40,631 |
| Southampton | 11,638,158 | 9,287,132 | -2,351,026 |
| Hull | 7,215,288 | 4,253,206 | -2,962,082 |
| Liverpool Docks | 5,492,123 | 4,103,900 | -1,388,223 |
| Harwich | 5,988,242 | 2,838,950 | -3,149,292 |
| Belfast Port | 3,246,064 | 3,214,349 | -31,715 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 3915
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Leftover or discarded plastic materials, including trimmings and scraps, ready for recycling