Pepsico has a 25% recycled content goal for the company’s plastic packaging. | LuqmanLutfi Photography/Shutterstock
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.
The U.S. has become a focus of investment for a small yet growing portion of the Chinese scrap processing industry. Backers of two in-development operations note they are looking for regulatory stability and a strong supply of recyclables.
Juri Freeman of Resource Recycling Systems (left) moderated a plastics-focused panel consisting of (from left to right) Michael Sangiacomo of Recology, Zeina El-Azzi of Brightmark Energy, Kate Bailey of Eco-Cycle and Tim Ponrathnam of Berry Global. | Resource Recycling Conference/Brian Adams Photography
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.
Some readers challenged the environmental benefit of Arqlite’s plastic gravel product. | Via Arqlite’s Instagram page.
A startup won money and media attention for its recycled plastic gravel, but some readers are concerned the product could cause more environmental harm than simply landfilling the scrap plastic.
Unifi identified a number of factors that accounted for lower profits last fiscal year. | Recycle Man/Shutterstock
A major U.S. consumer of RPET enjoyed higher sales figures but suffered significantly lower net income last fiscal year. One reason was cheap polyester imports from China and India.
Indorama Ventures plans to make significant investments in its recycled PET production capabilities. | Kwangmoozaa/Shutterstock
Citing the need to meet rising demand in the near future, plastics producer Indorama is investing $1 billion in its recycling division.
Ohio lawmakers recently passed a bill codifying a number of definitions related to chemical recycling. | Paul Brady Photography/Shutterstock
The sixth- and seventh-largest states in the country recently approved legislation that could help operators using pyrolysis and other technologies.
During the first six months of 2019, India brought in 156 million pounds of U.S. scrap plastics. | Avigator Fortuner/Shutterstock
Recovered plastic has largely stopped flowing from the U.S. into India, which until recently has been among the top importers of the material.
PET and HDPE bales are fetching lower prices than they were a month ago, but PP and high-grade film have shown stability.
Coca-Cola has a goal to make its bottles and cans with an average of 50% recycled material by 2030. | Sundry Photography/Shutterstock
Coca-Cola will use recycled PET and plant-derived plastic in a Dasani water bottle, creating a package known as the “HybridBottle.” The move is one of several recycling-related changes being rolled out.