Pratt Industries’ facility in Albany, Ga. | Courtesy of Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission
Two major producers of containerboard made from recycled fiber are growing their presence in the U.S. Pratt Industries will add on to a Georgia box plant, and Atlantic Packaging is working on a major facility in Illinois.
The strong global containerboard demand suggests the U.S. recovered fiber market will continue to export OCC. | ja images / Shutterstock
Paper mills that use a lot of recovered fiber were forced to pay substantially more for OCC over the past few months, reflecting the global strength in corrugated packaging demand.
Nonprofit MRF operator Eureka Recycling is one industry stakeholder implementing creative strategies to find and keep employees.
At the end of the day, after all of the equipment and policies and market investments, recycling still relies on people doing the work. But those employees have been harder to come by lately.
August has brought hot pricing for OCC, mixed paper, PET and HDPE, all important materials extracted from the curbside stream.
Local officials and property managers can use The Recycling Partnership’s tools to better communicate acceptable materials and proper diversion practices to multi-family residents. | jamesteohart / Shutterstock
The Recycling Partnership has launched a digital resource offering a variety of free customizable outreach materials to help recycling coordinators boost materials recovery at apartment and condo complexes.
Recovered fiber exports jumped from 7.4 million short tons in the first half of 2020 to 9.0 million short tons this year. | Sreytoch Lann / Shutterstock
Recovered fiber exports increased significantly during the first six months of 2021 compared with the same period last year, with a spike in material moving to India and Thailand. Plastic exports were steady year over year.
Oregon will establish a producer responsibility program for packaging, printing and writing paper, and food serviceware. | Jacquie Klose / Shutterstock
Oregon will overhaul components of its recycling system and will make packaging producers partially responsible for funding recycling of their products. It’s the second U.S. state to approve such a law.
