Industry Announcements

May 2018

Erema Group has reported consolidated sales of 155 million euros at the end of the 2017-18 fiscal year, a new record for the companies in the group.

Gore Fabrics has joined the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s “Make Fashion Circular” initiative, which includes 20 brands focused on implementing circular economy principles in the textile industry.

National Geographic has begun a campaign called Plastic or Planet?, which will aim to raise awareness of challenges caused by ocean plastics and to reduce the amount of single-use plastic that enters waterways.

Project Effective has launched as a collaborative effort between a handful of companies in different sectors of the textile industry, including plastics recycling.

Recyplast S.A., a Costa Rica-based plastic recycling company, recently celebrated 25 years in business.

Pyrolysis company Bin2Barrel has selected Bollegraaf Recycling Solutions to supply an automated system to sort feedstock destined for Bin2Barrel’s Amsterdam operation.

Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative (OBRC), the industry-owned container stewardship group, will hold a collection event during which redeemed deposits will be donated to a local food bank. OBRC will also match donations up to $1,000.

TerraCycle and beauty products company L’Occitane have launched a recycling program accepting a variety of beauty and skincare products at L’Occitane store locations.

Unifi has received an award recognizing best practices in environmental and business sustainability from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Green Line Polymers has installed a plastics recycling line from NGR capable of processing more than 4,000 pounds per hour.

Brand owner Henkel will include the How2Recycle label on packaging for a selection of its laundry and home care products, including Soft Scrub and Purex Crystals. Also, protective packaging company Pregis will adopt the How2Recycle label, starting with its LDPE air pillows, which are used to protect products during shipment.

The PAC Packaging Consortium released its “Sustainability Checklist for Structural Package Designers.”

Organizers of the Plastics Recycling Show Europe (PRSE) exhibition and conference in Amsterdam reported greatly increased attendance over 2017, the first year of the event.

Pyrowave, a Montreal company using a catalytic microwave depolymerization process to recycle PS, announced that Jean-Michel Gires has joined the company’s advisory board.

Nelson Switzer, vice president and chief sustainability officer for Nestlé Waters North America, will leave his position effective May 4 and will join Loop Industries as the company’s chief growth officer.

The Recycling Partnership (TRP) announced that Love Beauty and Planet, a new Unilever brand, has joined as a member and will contribute $40 to TRP for each ton of greenhouse gases emitted during production of its products. TRP also recently announced that Niagara Bottling, a major end user of recycled PET, has joined its ranks.

TerraCycle and Barilla have launched a mail-in recycling program for Barilla’s instant pasta pouches.

April 2018

Bausch + Lomb has recycled nearly 2.5 million contact lenses and packaging materials since the company launched the recycling program in partnership with TerraCycle in 2016.

The North Face has announced a new collection of T-shirts and tote bags made partially from recycled plastic bottles collected through the company’s Bottle Source program, which has recovered more than 160,000 pounds of plastic bottles in various national parks.

Procter & Gamble has announced recycling-related goals as part of its new Ambition 2030 platform. The goals include using 100 percent recyclable or reusable packaging for the company’s top 20 brands.

ReTrac Connect has made available recordings of the 2018 Measurement Matters summit, which it co-hosted in February in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Unifi will accept plastic bottles recycled at the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship event in mid-August. The company will use the collected plastic to manufacture its Repreve recycled fiber material.

Tomra has released the results of a survey that found beverage containers are the most-recycled products in the U.S.

The 30A Company, a Florida apparel producer using recycled PET bottles, has consumed the equivalent of 1 million plastic bottles since its launch.

Burt’s Bees and TerraCycle have launched a nationwide mail-back recycling program accepting all Burt’s Bees packaging.

The Plastics Industry Association has announced that the NPE2018 conference, to be held May 7-11 in Orlando, Fla., will strive for 100 percent diversion. The conference will include an on-site shredding operation to pre-process collected material before it is transported to a local plastics recycling company.

Kimberly-Clark Professional has expanded its RightCycle Program to include protective eyewear from labs, cleanrooms and industrial facilities.

Nestlé has announced its aim to use 100 percent recyclable or reusable packaging by 2025.

Subaru of America announced a new partnership with TerraCycle to divert hard-to-recycle plastics from landfills and incinerators.

Unifi recycled more than 90,000 used PET bottles from Flint, Mich. into its Repreve brand recycled polyester fiber, which was then eventually used to make clothing on display at the Queens Museum’s Watershed Gallery.

The American Chemistry Council has praised Georgia lawmakers for approving legislation that supports the pyrolysis sector through regulatory changes. The group called for Gov. Nathan Deal to sign the bill.

Cambridge Consultants has designed a range of biodegradable PHA plastic products for use in food packaging, including hot food and drink applications.

NOVA Chemicals has won the Excellence in EPS Recycling Award from the EPS Industry Alliance.

March 2018

Erema has doubled its sales of production-scrap recycling equipment over the past 12 months.

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) has created a “Century Club” for longtime recycling industry members who are retired or semi-retired but would like to remain involved with the industry. ISRI also released its 2018 advocacy agenda, laying out the organization’s areas of focus for lobbying.

Advocacy group As You Sow announced actor and U.N. Environment Goodwill ambassador Adrian Grenier will present Starbucks with a shareholder resolution March 21, asking the company to phase out its plastic straw usage and meet its packaging reuse and recycling goals.

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) will consider the addition of flexible PVC to the ISRI Scrap Specifications Circular at the group’s next meeting on April 16.

Petcore Europe has added 11 new members representing different sectors of the PET industry so far this year.

The Ohio Recycling Coalition (ORC) has been formed by recycling advocates in the state.

Terracycle and health product company Twinlab have partnered to provide a mail-in recycling program for Twinlab’s packaging.

Tomra has named Brian Gist as the company’s UK and Nordics Managing Director.

Emterra Group has hired Gordon Day as its vice president of circular economy and sustainability, which is part of the Canadian company’s national leadership team.

Garnier launched the second year of Rinse, Recycle, Repeat, a collaborative recycling campaign with TerraCycle and DoSomething.org. The campaign features actress Mandy Moore as ambassador.

Metro Vancouver, the regional authority for the Vancouver, British Columbia area, announced an expanded polystyrene disposal ban will take effect July 1.

The Plastics Industry Association has hired Shannon Crawford as its director of state government affairs. Crawford has prior experience in government affairs at the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA).

Environmental organizations formed a campaign titled Starbucks: Break Free From Plastic, which calling on the global coffee company to switch to using a paper cup without a plastic lining, eliminate its usage of plastic straws and more.