Last month's youth-led demonstrations indicate citizens around the world are going to demand real action around emissions in the decades to come. That bodes well for materials recovery but could also open the door to some complicated industry conversations.

It's clear the current recycling system can't deliver sufficient resin for brand owners to hit their increasingly ambitious recycled-content goals. A PepsiCo executive recently discussed that supply gap. Last fall, PepsiCo committed to hitting 25% recycled content across its portfolio of plastic packaging by 2025. It also said it would achieve 33% recycled plastic in its PET containers. Those initiatives...

It's clear the current recycling system can't deliver sufficient resin for brand owners to hit their increasingly ambitious recycled-content goals. A PepsiCo executive recently discussed that supply gap. Last fall, PepsiCo committed to hitting 25% recycled content across its portfolio of plastic packaging by 2025. It also said it would achieve 33% recycled plastic in its PET containers. Those initiatives...

This article originally appeared in the August 2019 issue of Resource Recycling. Subscribe today for access to all print content.   With so much uncertainty around export markets for recyclables, it's become clear the industry needs to open more pathways to end users in North America. But how to do that? For starters, strengthening domestic markets will require bolstered relationships between...

This article originally appeared in the Spring 2019 issue of Plastics Recycling Update. Subscribe today for access to all print content.   Over most of the past couple of decades, the plastics packaging sector was able to assume the municipal recycling structure would evolve alongside it. Innovations in material use would hit the market, and though some of the new items caused...

This article originally appeared in the Spring 2019 issue of Plastics Recycling Update. Subscribe today for access to all print content.   Recycling professionals know well how shifts in markets, materials and more have recently forced adjustments and revamped strategies on the part of facility operators. But materials recovery trends carry ripple effects for stakeholders throughout the sector, including equipment manufacturers. For...

A number of stories in this edition of Resource Recycling attest to the fact that recycling end market development is buzzing. A large new containerboard mill that will consume recovered fiber was announced last month in Utah. A composite rail tie manufacturer that purchases mixed plastic is eyeing growth. And the state of Colorado has launched an innovative program to...

Should some types of single-use plastic be banned? Or is infrastructure improvement a better answer to current plastic waste concerns? A varied group of industry leaders tackled those questions last week. A panel on Aug. 28 at the Resource Recycling Conference and Trade Show in New Orleans explored the intersection of municipal recycling and wider plastics management. As marine debris...

Should some types of single-use plastic be banned? Or is infrastructure improvement a better answer to current plastic waste concerns? A varied group of industry leaders tackled those questions last week. A panel on Aug. 28 at the Resource Recycling Conference and Trade Show in New Orleans explored the intersection of municipal recycling and wider plastics management. As marine debris...

Measurement and markets - two keys to strengthening recycling - were highlighted on the first day of the Resource Recycling Conference in New Orleans. The 2019 Resource Recycling Conference and Trade Show, the 10th iteration of the annual event, kicked off Monday at the Sheraton New Orleans. The three-day show has drawn around 500 municipal recycling leaders to the Big...