British plastics recycler and converter Jayplas plans to expand its presence in south Wales, more than doubling the region's reprocessing capacity. Together, its facilities in Gorseinon, Swansea, and Tafarnaubach Industrial Estate, Tredegar, would be capable of processing at least 100,000 tonnes of recycled flexible and rigid plastics annually when fully operational in March 2028, according to an announcement from the Welsh government.
"Jayplas are delighted to announce we are opening two plastics processing and recycling plants in Swansea and Tredegar. We have worked closely with the Welsh Government to expand our operations into Wales," said Jayplas commercial manager Kerry O’Neill.
"Jayplas choosing to open a second site here in Wales is a further boost to decarbonisation and will see the company create green jobs in an area with a rich industrial past," said Welsh Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy, Adam Price. The company had initially planned to open just one site in Wales, in Swansea. The plans for this plant were first announced in autumn 2023.
The company said at the time that the facility would require an investment of £45m (€52m) and be developed in three stages: a sorting plant for mixed rigid plastics and film from kerbside (household) collections, a bottle wash and extrusion plant, and a flexible packaging wash and processing plant. The facility was to go online in 2025.
Significant investments in past two years
In its annual accounts for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 business years, Jayplas reported significant investment in its recycling and manufacturing infrastructure "including the commissioning of a new HDPE recycling facility and continued development of the multi-polymer recycling facility in Swansea". The throughput and employment figures for the single plant announced in 2023 are the same as the combined figures in the most current announcement.
Jayplas describes itself as one of the UK's largest independent plastics recyclers and recycled plastic packaging manufacturers. The privately-held company operates an integrated recycling model covering collection, sorting, washing, pellet production and flexible packaging manufacturing across eight UK sites. Its existing network includes facilities in Corby, Loughborough, Alfreton, Birmingham, North Thresby, near Grimbsby and Worksop. Jayplas is the trading name for J&A Young.
The group produces recycled PET flakes, recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) pellets, as well as food-grade recycled HDPE and PP and flexible packaging containing up to 100 per cent recycled content.
Parent company returns to profitability in FY 2025
Parent company J & A Young Group reported turnover of nearly £59m (approximately €69m) for the year ended 30 September 2025, up almost 17 per cent from a year earlier. Operating profit increased to £1.4m from £0.2m, while the group returned to a pre-tax profit of £0.4m after recording a £1.3m loss in the previous year. Net profit amounted to £0.14m, compared with a loss of £1.47m in 2024.
In their report, the group's directors said trading remained challenging in the 2025 business year because of polymer market volatility, uncertainty across a number of end markets and margin pressure, but highlighted continued investment in the long-term development of the business. The investments were intended to strengthen the group's processing capabilities, improve product quality and support future growth opportunities, they wrote.
