Prices for baled curbside plastics are up across the board this month, with natural HDPE notching another record high.
Natural high-density polyethylene (HDPE) from curbside collection programs now averages 81.88 cents per pound. This compares with 77.25 cents last month. Many regions are reporting prices currently around 86.00 cents per pound. The price was 33.75 cents one year ago.
Color HDPE is also up again, now trading at 30.13 cents per pound, up from 23.63 cents last month. This compares to 4.64 cents one year ago.
The national average price of post-consumer PET beverage bottles and jars moved up 18% over the last month and is now trading at 11.95 cents per pound, compared with 10.14 cents per pound this time in March. One year ago, the national average was 9.34 cents per pound.
Polypropylene is now 29.69 cents per pound, compared to 28.34 cents last month. This plastic averaged 5.69 cents per pound one year ago.
The national average price of Grade A film is up again, now at 15.63 cents, compared to 13.69 cents per pound last month. Grade B film is now 5.63 cents, up from 5.13 cents per pound last month, while Grade C film remains a low 0.88 cents.
These prices are as reported on the Secondary Materials Pricing (SMP) Index. This pricing represents what is being paid for post-consumer recyclable materials in a sorted, baled format, picked up at most major recycling centers.
For a free trial to SMP’s Online Post-Consumer Pricing Index, visit the Recycling Markets website. You can also contact Christina Boulanger-Bosley at cmb@recyclingmarkets.net or 330-956-8911.
