Over the past month, market prices for curbside paper grades have dropped significantly. Post-consumer plastic prices, meanwhile, have only seen slight declines.
As we enter 2018, the market for most grades of curbside recyclables remains unchanged, although aluminum prices have seen a recent uptick.
Earlier this year, ABC, the national government broadcaster in Australia, ran a series of programs called “War on Waste.” These shows were dedicated to putting the huge amount of waste generated in the forefront of people’s thinking.
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Chinese authorities have issued the first five rounds of recyclable-material import permits for 2018. Compared with 2017, the country has allowed substantially less recycled plastic to enter the country and approved permits for far fewer companies across all material types.
A study commissioned by Closed Loop Partners identifies strategies to enhance the PET bottle recycling system, allowing recycled PET to better compete with virgin plastic.
Two brand owners recently made pledges to boost recycled content and improve the recyclability of their packaging.
Recyclables exported out of the U.S. are moving to Southeast Asia, where reclaimers and mills are dramatically increasing purchases as China closes its doors to recovered materials. New figures illustrate that shift.
The value of recovered packaging is flat to up as the new year begins.
