Looking for "made with recycled
content" on labels is a great start if you're trying to make more
sustainable choices. Choosing products made from recycled materials instead of
new ones helps
reduce landfill waste, lowers the demand for raw materials, and reduces the energy needed for production. But there's more to it. Sometimes, you'll see labels mentioning that
the product or packaging you are considering is made with "post-consumer
recycled material," along with a percentage. With the constant buzz around
greenwashing, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by all the terms. However, a bottle
with a PCR label is quite different from one that doesn't have it.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website EcoPlas.
Why Post-Consumer Recycled Waste is a Sustainable Option
Post-consumer waste comes from products or packaging that have reached the end of their lifecycle with the consumer. After being used, and hopefully reused, multiple times through refilling a plastic cleaning bottle and reusing the spray trigger, these items face two options: end up in a landfill or be recycled.
Keeping plastic out of landfills is crucial. Around 46% of plastic waste is landfilled, but plastic can take a long time to degrade. Plastic bags can take 10-20 years to break down, while plastic bottles can take up to 450 years. This slow breakdown generates numerous smaller plastic fragments, which become microplastics once their size reaches five millimeter or less. Additionally, 22% of plastic waste is mismanaged and becomes litter, harming the environment and threatening animal and human health. So, recycling post-consumer waste is essential to prevent plastic from becoming pollution.
Creating post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic starts with collecting and sorting recycled PET and HDPE items from commercial and residential recycling programs like bottles and milk jugs. The plastic is then cleaned and sorted, and any scrap materials are removed. The items are broken down, melted and reformed into a resin material. This resin can be mixed with other plastics to create PCR plastic packaging, bottles, jars, and closures, with varying content percentages of up to 100%.
Incorporating PCR resins into products allows manufacturers to significantly reduce the impact of their operations. Using recycled plastic requires fewer fossil fuels and energy to produce. For example, recycling just ten plastic bottles can save enough energy to power a laptop for over 25 hours. At a minimum, PCR reduces energy consumption by 79% and GHG emissions by 67%.
Challenges and Progress for PCR
So why aren't more packaging and products made with PCR materials? The main reasons are material use regulations, cost and availability.
There is uncertainty about the purity and uniformity of PCR materials and whether they may contain harmful substances. For instance, black plastic kitchen items made from recycled electronics may have toxic flame retardants and other chemicals. Additionally, PCR plastic can be tricky to color. It's hard to achieve light, transparent and pastel shades because the material isn't completely clear. This can be a problem for marketers who want their products to stand out on store shelves.
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Post-Consumer Plastic Reuse.
However, the most significant obstacles to increasing PCR plastic use are its cost and accessibility. PCR resin can be more expensive than virgin resin, the availability of PCR materials is limited, and the recycling streams often contain contaminated plastics, all of which make it challenging to get a consistent supply of high-quality material for PCR products. Most curbside recycling systems only accept rigid plastics #1 (PET) and #2 (HDPE), so sourcing PCR for other types of plastics, such as #5 (PP), which is commonly used in pumps and caps, can be difficult.
These issues mean there's not enough properly recycled plastic to meet the demand for recycled content. Currently, the supply of PCR plastics meets only about 6% of demand, which is expected to increase by 5 million metric tons by . This shortage drives up prices and limits the use of PCR materials. More robust legislation is needed to address this, which is why this is a crucial issue in the negotiations of the Global Plastics Treaty.
In a circular economy, plastic packaging and products are designed to be compatible with the recycling system, reduce contamination, and enhance the stream of postconsumer resin (PCR) – which is then put back into new products. We call it Circular By Design™, and it all starts here.
In a circular economy, plastic packaging and products are designed to be compatible with the recycling system, reduce contamination, and enhance the stream of postconsumer resin (PCR) – which is then put back into new products. We call it Circular By Design™, and it all starts here.
In a circular economy, plastic packaging and products are designed to be compatible with the recycling system, reduce contamination, and enhance the stream of postconsumer resin (PCR) – which is then put back into new products. We call it Circular By Design™, and it all starts here.
If you are a larger brand, connect your sustainability and procurement teams to talk about incorporating PCR into products or packaging. You can also go directly to your package converter to talk about PCR in packaging and what options and innovations they can offer. If you’re a package converter looking for a PCR supplier, visit our Buyers & Sellers Directory or contact the APR.
Keep in mind that you can use PCR in your packaging and products, but also in work-in-progress items across your facility from pallets to totes to trash bags.
All state laws requiring PCR content stipulate that the PCR must be post-consumer, however certified post-consumer PCR is only required in certain state contexts to date. The APR encourages state legislators and regulators to incorporate PCR certification requirements to support North American recycled markets and provide full transparency. For more detail, see APR’s PCR Certification program.
PCR certification is required in California’s EPR law for any PCR used to meet the source reduction requirement, and for Oregon’s requirement for PCR in roll carts. Its requirement is discretionary for New Jersey’s recycled content law, and potentially for Maine’s.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of recycled abs plastic granules for sale. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.