Welcome to our first edition of Circular’s newsletter, our take on what’s happening in the recycling industry today and our own internal company news.
Recycling Industry News
Our top news picks from April:
- CDP: Landmark data building a baseline for corporate action on the plastics crisis.
- The New York Times: There’s an Explosion of Plastic Waste. Big Companies Say ‘We’ve Got This.’
- Politico: A mixed bag of plastics [Global Treaty]
Landmark data building a baseline for corporate action on the plastics crisis.
Nearly 3,000 companies disclosed their plastic-related activities for the first time through CDP’s reporting platform, marking a critical milestone for the future of plastic circularity.
Results demonstrate growing momentum in addressing the plastic crisis:
- 42% of companies currently assess the impacts of plastic in their value chains (another 24% plan to do so in the next two years)
- 36% have plastic-related targets in place (an additional 25% plan to within the next two years)
- Data from these 3,000 companies (with a combined market cap of ~$25 trillion) form a critical baseline for measuring and monitoring corporate action in the future
Our takeaways?
- With Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) compliance fees set to nearly double the true cost of virgin plastic, companies need to quickly reassess their material supply chain to consider using more post-consumer recycled content in their packaging
There’s an Explosion of Plastic Waste. Big Companies Say ‘We’ve Got This.’
A recent New York Times article caught our attention. It commends companies like Nestlé and Procter & Gamble for making aggressive commitments to use more recycled plastic in their packaging in the coming years. To reach such goals, they rely on “advanced” or “chemical” recycling plants, a new generation of recycling technology.
A deeper dive into these plants, however, uncovers technical issues, lawsuits, fires, oil spills, and more, painting a somber picture of the industry’s future, and frankly the world. Scientists are worried that plastic production could almost quadruple by midcentury. The lack of scaled technology is resulting in companies reversing their original recycled plastic goals. For example, Unilever recently resized its ambition, aiming for 25% recycled plastic in its packaging portfolio instead of 50%.
Our takeaways?
- Brands need to eliminate hard-to-recycle plastics from their portfolios.
- The world is drowning in plastic, and advanced recycling tech isn’t the (only) way out. In fact, mechanical recycling is expected to play a far more important role than chemical recycling (by a factor of over 10x).
- Addressing the plastic pollution crisis will take more than voluntary commitments. EPR is needed to make real progress.
A mixed bag of plastics
The fourth of five global talks about an agreement to end plastic pollution happened at the end of April with only incremental progress. This means negotiators have only six months to finalize an agreement ahead of the year-end goal.
While the event as a whole was a bit disjointed, countries did agree on a final agenda in preparation for the final treaty talk in November 2024 in South Korea.
Our takeaways?
- The good news is that there’s general agreement across stakeholders, including industry, that a global plastic treaty is necessary.
- However, there is fierce disagreement about limiting overall plastic production (and some alarming murmurs of scientists being intimidated and harassed).
- The world is paying greater attention to chemicals of concern, which is good for consumers and the recycling industry.
- There is broad support for EPR legislation.
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Circular News
We have a front-row seat in the world of recycled materials and are constantly making moves to help support brands in their journey towards sustainability.
So, what have we been up to this month?
✅ We closed an additional round of financing and launched a new website
✅ We’ve been attending many industry conferences and tradeshows and presented our platform at Resource Recycling Inc.’s Plastics Recycling Conference
✅ We dove deep into the EPR landscape to help brands look ahead
✅ We are heading to Circularity in Chicago on May 22-24. Will you be there? Come say hi!
In the meantime, check out our platform to help brands find the right recycled materials they need from the right buyers in a fraction of the time. Book a demo here.
About Circular
Launched in 2022, Circular.co makes sustainable sourcing easier with data. We built the world's largest post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials database for brands to navigate markets and make data-driven decisions. Responsible producers can easily use detailed technical spec data to find the right materials at transparent prices from vetted suppliers, all in one online platform. For more information and to arrange a demo, visit circular.co.