Full Transcript for Ep. 63: Setting the Record Straight on Plastics Recycling with APR's Kate Eagles

says that they want, it's on its way to be recycled. It will be recycled. Now, if you put a a diaper in your bin, it probably won't. So again, we're talking about things that are are allowed in your community, but I'll be very clear on this. It needs to get in the bin to get recycled. Exactly. So we definitely encourage people to keep recycling, no matter what you're hearing in the media about these headlines, that recycling doesn't work. Next, is bottle to bottle recycling really happening? There's a perception that plastic bottles aren't actually recycled into new bottles. But we know that's not true. Can you talk about what's happening with bottle to bottle recycling and how those markets have evolved? Sure. And I I will confirm bottle to bottle recycling is really happening. Your beverage bottles are are made from a commonly used plastic. It's very safe, it's clear, and it's relatively easy to to process it back into food grade material suitable for remanufacture into a bottle. So bottles can be made from 100% recycled material. And over the last twenty years or so, we used to see this is like a PET bottle I'm talking about, we used to see some of that recycled material going into polyester fiber markets. Bottle markets have overtaken the the fiber markets by a large measure. So more recycled material goes into bottles and other food packaging than any other category. So it definitely can happen. It's happening out there every day. And some of the things that are driving it is we do have some requ recycled content requirements in certain states. That helps drive it. And there's certainly lots of examples of this on the market, mainly in food and beverage and and some sort of other food packaging segments. But lots of lots of good examples out there of this being this happening. Exactly. So bottles and other types of packaging can be recycled and put back into the same type of packaging. But There are other markets for recycled plastic. And that leads me to my next question. We hear a lot about plastics being downcycled, or what I like to refer to as the myth of downcycling. It's often with the implication that if plastic isn't turned back into the same product, like we were just talking about, it's not actually considered recycling or that it's not a useful way to use recycled plastics. What's wrong with? That argument about downcycling? Well, I think it just it just is limiting. It's a limiting argument, right? So it's certainly nice to have closed loop applications. But when you talk about something used in a durable good, and a durable good with a lifespan of 20, 50 years, even longer, that replaces virgin plastic just like packaging does. I'm talking about things like agricultural and highway piping, railroad ties, or plastic decking. These are long use products that can use a mixed color recycled material, has a long lifespan, and displaces new plastic use. So all good things. That's why we say it's a myth of downcycling. It's just another use for recycled plastics that really needs to complement closed loop applications like the bottles I just talked about. No more to be said on that one. I think it's just a really complementary usage for recycled plastics. We talk about these different applications and uses for recycled plastic. And we really need these for the markets to grow. So could you just talk a little bit more about the importance of those diverse markets for plastic recycling and not limiting ourselves to thinking that it can only go from bottle to bottle or package to package? Why is that so important? Well, it's important again, because we need a diversity of markets to use all of the various grades that we collect. And a very practical, obvious example is when you collect, let's say you collect mixed detergent bottles or yogurt tubs, things like that, you're gonna have a mixed color stream. So you need to use you need to have an application that's tolerant of that mixed color stream. there are certain things you can do with those streams to to get a certain color range or tone or even a little bit of color sorting, but in general, you're going to have a mixed color stream. So we need and we're we're also gonna have some mixed properties in that material, because you're using a mixed packaging stream. So you need some end markets that are tolerant of that. And so the there's a there's a great market variety out there and we need a variation in markets, both longer term sort of long lifespan durables, and a shorter term sort of packaging market to really keep the market robust and use all the streams that we collect. So all of these ways that we can use recycle plastics are important. And just reiterating that downcycling really is a myth. Let's talk about where recyclable plastics go when we put them in the bin. We've talked about the different products they're made into, but let's take a step back for a minute. Another misconception is that most of the plastic collected for recycling in the US gets shipped overseas. This is something that we continue to hear over and over again. But what's the reality today and how has that changed over the years? Right. Well, the reality today is is not much gets exported. Some I think our latest data has about seven percent of plastics recovered in the US for recycling were exported. This was t 2024. And that export figure of seven percent represents rigids and some film categories. So what happens when you put your recycled container in your recycling bin, it goes to a material recovery f facility where it is sorted. So that you have paper and metals. glass often at those facilities and plastic. So it gets sorted. It was true that fifteen, twenty years ago, a lot of that material was plastic material was exported. That has really, really diminished over the last, I'd say, twenty fifteen to twenty years to where we are now. Most of the plastic we recover in the US is domestically processed into materials suitable for

remanufacture. So it really isn't true. that our material is primarily exported. It's just not true. Now I will say that to some extent, these are now global commodities. So you do have a little trade and you always will. But we really have invested and focused on North American recycling infrastructure capacity over the last twenty years or so. Right. So the plastics that you put in your bin in the United States can actually get remade into products right here in the United States once again. But like you said Of course, we do have some exports, but I definitely think not to the extent that is the perception of many people. No, definitely not. Okay, on to our next misconception. Does recycling actually reduce the need for new plastic? Some critics argue that recycling doesn't really reduce plastic production, but using recycled plastic means that we don't have to rely as heavily on virgin plastic. Can you explain the relationship and why increasing recycled content in new products is so important? Sure. And I will say that you can certainly also reduce plastic use, right? I would say that that both things can be true. But I think you you can look at other ways to reduce plastic use, but recycling is certainly one of the solutions because as we've pointed out, and I think you just did, recycled plastic can directly replace new or virgin plastics in new products, right? So no question there. We just recently d have done a a blog about University of California, Berkeley, and University of California Santa Barbara study that really talks about this, talks about how forty percent recycled plastic globally, using recycled content back into products could significantly reduce plastic waste and a new plastic production. So if you're curious about that, check out our information resources on our website. But no question about it, using recycled material. helps with the environmental impacts and just the just the the basic math that you need to then use less new plastic to produce new things. So yeah. Absolutely. And I'm glad you started with stating that we don't claim that recycling is the only answer to reduce plastic waste. Of course we're talking about recycling today and it can replace the use of new virgin plastic, but to reduce plastic waste we use we need other strategies as well. Recycling reduction, reuse, and others. Let's go back to the environmental benefits of using recycled plastic. Keeping plastic out of landfills is an important benefit of recycling, of course, like we just mentioned, but it's certainly not the only one. What are some of the other environmental benefits of using recycled plastic instead of virgin plastic that many people may not realize? Right. Well you're using material that's already in in circulation, right? So you're keeping them in circulation. You're not having to recreate things. And that means that you're using less energy and you're emitting fewer greenhouse gases. So we've done various life cycle analyses on the impacts of recycled plastics versus use of new plastics. And there's just no question about it. Use of recycled plastics, as I mentioned, has much a much better energy and greenhouse gas footprint compared to using new plastics. So It's just pretty simple. It's just a more efficient use of what we already have in circulation. So it's good all all the way around. So many environmental benefits of recycling. But is recycling just an environmental issue? We often talk about recycling primarily in terms of the environmental benefits that we've just been talking about. But there's also a significant economic story that often gets overlooked. Can you talk about the jobs and the economic activities supported by plastic recycling? Sure. Our APR membership, we have a lot of recyclers and we talk to them a lot about their businesses because recycling is a business and it's it's part of the domestic infrastructure that we have. And there are various jobs at every level. So we talked earlier about when you throw your recyclable packaging into a bin. There are jobs in collection, there are jobs in sorting that material, there are jobs in moving that material and then processing it our at our reclaimer locations, cleaning and remanufacturing that material into a resin suitable for remanufacture and then of course manufacturing. So there are lots of jobs in that chain. So recycling creates more employment per ton than landfilling. So it's just more productive that I mentioned, more efficient and more energy reducing. practice than landfilling and remanufacturing from new materials. So I'll add that the recycling industry supports billions of dollars in economic activity. And as mentioned, it's general support to our manufacturing and supply chains in the US. So again, it is part of a larger, successful and vibrant business model, as well as being an important environmental practice. Thanks, Kate. And I think this is a good time to pause to hear from our sponsors. This episode is sponsored by Sun Chemical. What makes packaging easier to recycle? It's not just the material or the package design. Every component matters, including the ink used for decoration. That's why Sun Chemical developed Sun Cure Ecoplast, a direct print UV ink technology that helps brandowners and converters combine high-quality decoration with. Design for Recyclability. Suncure Ecoplast is designed for direct printing on rigid polypropylen packaging, including cups and tubs. It delivers the performance converters need, strong adhesion, abrasion resistance, fast curing, low migration, and excellent opaque white performance. It's also designed to support compatibility with established polypropylene recycling streams. Most importantly, Sun Cure Ecoplast has earned APR design for recyclability recognition for rigid polypropylene applications. Independent testing showed that, under the tested conditions, ecoplast formulations wash off polypropylenar as filterable particles during

post-consumer mechanical recycling. In practical terms, this recognition shows that inks can support established recycling processes. while still meeting the performance demands of direct print packaging. For suitable applications, direct-to-pack printing can also simplify the package by reducing or eliminating extra labels or sleeves that can support monomaterial polypropylene packaging strategies while preserving strong shelf presence and brand. Ecoplast expands Sun Chemicals portfolio of APR recognized ink technologies Complementing previously recognized solutions for sleeve applications on PET containers, as well as solvent-based UV flexographic and water-based technologies for HDPE packaging applications. Together, these recognitions reflect Sun Chemicals' commitment to supporting recyclability across multiple packaging formats, substrates, and print platforms. As brands and converters respond to increasing design for recycling expectations, Recycle content objectives and evolving regulatory requirements, such as extended producer responsibility or EPR programs, packaging decisions are increasingly evaluated across the full product lifestyle. SunCure Ecoplast demonstrates that recyclability and high performance package decoration can go hand in hand. And now back to our episode. Okay, Kate, now I wanna get into what needs to happen next. We've talked about plastic recycling and what we're accomplishing today, some of the realities, but we also recognize that there's a lot of work to do. What are the biggest opportunities to improve recycling and make sure that more plastic gets recycled into new products? Sure. I'm gonna start with something very squarely in APR's wheelhouse, and that is package design for recyclability. Our flagship APR design guide has been around for 30 plus years now. And just in case anyone's not familiar with it, it really talks about how you design your packaging and every component of that packaging to be compatible with North American recycling streams. So if you're in a position to improve your packaging to make it more compatible, and compatible means you don't negatively impact yield or quality, ideally, right? And so if you're in a position to help with that, that's very important. And we continue to push that as we have for the last Several decades and we'll continue to push that moving forward. It really does help get the most out of the stream if we can design packaging properly. And of course, it's important that we keep increasing collection and access to recycling programs. So consumers have the opportunity to put something in that recycling bin. And as I mentioned earlier, we gotta get in the bin if we're going to increase the material that gets into the recycling system. Markets. So it's all good to collect material. But we need to have manufacturers who buy the recycled product and then turn it into something new. So we need markets, and I would say we need consistent demand in these markets. So as you

can imagine, if buyers of recycled plastic come in and out of the market, it's very hard for folks to invest in those systems if they can't guarantee ongoing consistent demand for their for their recycled materials. And finally, sort of to give this a little nudge along. We at APR do support policies and in some cases legislation that encourage or even require recycled content to really help level the playing field so that everyone has to do it, right? And and to make it the norm and to really help support our domestic collection and manufacturing infrastructure. If if we don't have end markets for the things that we collect, the system doesn't work. So again, we we encourage that. through some some policy and legislative actions as well. For anyone listening who's heard all of these negative claims about plastic recycling and isn't sure what to believe, what's the most important thing you'd want them to take away from today's conversation? Believe in recycling and support it. Talk about it positively with room for improvement. Put your stuff in the bin. If you are in a position to design packaging or have any influence there, look at our design guide, design that material. So that it's compatible. If you can, look for products that are made with recycled plastics. And if you have any influence or talk to your policymakers, support laws to improve recycling and support it. You know, if we all believe it and we all do it, there's a much better chance that we're gonna continue to improve our rates and our ability to to recycle more. Exactly. The theme of this whole episode is recycling works. Believe in it and keep recycling. Before we wrap up today's episode, I thought we could do a Mythbuster lightning round. I'll make a statement and you let us know if it's true or false with only a very brief one or two line explanation. A few of these will be a review of things that we've talked about today to just sum things up. But I'll also throw a few new ones in the mix too. I'll say the statement, you let me know if it's true or false, and just provide just a very brief explanation. So number one. Products can be made from 100% recycled plastic. True. We see that in some beverage bottles and some food packaging like clamshells. Most plastic collected for recycling in the US is shipped overseas. False. Most is is processed here in the US or Canada. Less than 7% of recovered materials are exported as of 2024. Using recycled plastic generally requires less energy than producing new virgin plastic. True. Often substantially less energy. If a product has a recycling symbol on it, it means it can be recycled in your community. False. Not necessarily. So please rely on the directions and guidance of your local municipal program as to what they accept in their programs. Yes, that is an important one to remember. It doesn't necessarily mean that it's collected for recycling in your community just because that symbol is on there. Next, plastics are recycled at much lower rates than other packaging materials. False. When we look at studies of materials collected from homes, about a third of cardboard boxes and aluminum cans are recycled from US homes. And I think folks think of these as flagship recyclable materials. So Really and rates are lower than that for mixed paper and glass. So I think it's generally true that recycling in the US could be improved and needs to be improved for all materials. Next. Plastic bags, wraps, and films can be recycled. True. Now it's also true that most curbside programs cannot take bags and films, that they don't travel through those systems well. There are some exceptions, but most do not. However, many communities have drop off, for example, to a supermarket, drop-off programs for plastic bags and films. And so from those programs and other kind of collection programs, about 1.3 billion pounds of of post-consumer plastic film was recovered for recycling in 2024. All black plastics are not recyclable. False. So if you're a consumer, I'd say put those black plastics in the bin. Now it is true that some black doesn't travel as well through the systems because of the way the sortation, the the automated sortation systems work. It's hard for the systems to see, quote unquote, through near infrared spectrometry, the black. But that's a design issue that we're working on. We as APR, we we now have some recognized inks that can make those black sortable. So in general, put those black items if they're accepted in your municipal programs. they're a category that's accepted in those programs. Put them in the bin. Yes. Okay. Last but not least, this is one that I continue to hear over and over again. It seems quite simple, but there is still a lot of confusion around this one. So I decided to end with this in our quick lightning round. Plastic bottle caps are not recyclable. False. Caps are recyclable if they're put on the bottle. So please put them back on your bottle. They are often a different material from the base of the bottle. But they can be recovered during processing. In fact, they're much more easily recovered during processing when they're put on the bottle, because if they're loose, they're just little tiny pieces that tend to get mixed up with broken glass and grit. So keep them on the bottle and they have a much higher chance of being recovered with that bottle. Thanks, Kate. So put those caps back on the bottle to be recycled. Lots of good information that we talked about today, Kate. I think we covered a lot of the common misconceptions that people have about recycling. And thanks for talking about these with me today. Thank you, Kara. That was fun. And thanks to everyone for listening. For more information about APR, plastic recycling, and much more, visit the APR website at plasticsrecycling.org. Check us out on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X at APR Recycles. You can find recycle content wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoyed today's episode, please be sure to subscribe, like, rate, and review. This podcast was recorded in the studios of Policy.