Press Release: APR Report Studies Pyrolysis as Possible Complement to Mechanical Recycling for Plastic Film and Flexible Packaging (FFP)
First-ever modeling of scaled FFP recycling, including design, collection methods and costs
The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) released today a comprehensive report that models the potential of pyrolysis technologies, as a complement to mechanical recycling, to recycle FFP back into plastic resins to be remanufactured into new plastic products. Prepared by Eunomia Research & Consulting, “How to Scale the Recycling of Flexible Film Packaging: Modeling Pyrolysis’ Role in Collection, Quantity and Costs of a Comprehensive Solution,” details the opportunities for increased FFP recovery volumes, the logistics and costs necessary to get materials to pyrolysis and other reprocessor markets, as well as the package design and policy necessary for change.
“This report represents an important next step in the conversation because it links together the changes needed to create a scalable recovery system for residential FFP,” said APR President & CEO, Steve Alexander. “Chemical recycling technologies, including pyrolysis, are one step within a larger recycling system. Like mechanical recycling, chemical recycling technologies will not scale without changes in package design, substantial investments in collection and sortation infrastructure, stronger consumer participation, and improved economic levers for manufacturers to encourage more use of recycled content.”
FFP packaging is a significant and growing packaging segment and includes a broad array of snack packaging, pouches, bread bags and many other applications. While the challenges and potential opportunities for recycling FFP packaging have been discussed for nearly a decade, the industry is now at an inflection point for these materials. Several countries and U.S. states are setting recycling goals for FFP, and numerous brand companies have publicly committed to producing only reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2030. While over 1.1 billion pounds of polyethylene film were recovered for recycling in 2021 (Stina Inc), the vast majority of flexible film packaging is not recycled.
“We intentionally focused this report on FFP packaging used by consumers in the home as opposed to more homogeneous post-commercial streams,” said Greg Janson, CEO of Granite Peak Plastics and Co-chair of the APR Chemical Recycling Research Working Group.” We know this to be a policy focus and a very challenging packaging stream to collect, sort, and recycle due to its light weight, diversity of materials, sizes, and formats. We wanted to fully understand the logistics and costs of pyrolysis’ potential role in recovery.”
The APR supports responsible chemical recycling technologies that complement mechanical recycling by converting post-consumer plastics back into recycled resins for new plastic products. This report was designed to better understand the potential complementary nature of re-processing technologies and how they might fit within a scalable recovery system for residential FFP. The findings illustrate that scaling the recycling of residential FFP back into recycled plastic is feasible but will require comprehensive and unparalleled supply chain coordination and investment.
The full report is available in the APR Library of resources, which includes other reports, studies, white papers, videos, and more.
Contact:
Kara Pochiro,
VP of Communications & Public Affairs
Kara@PlasticsRecycling.org
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The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) is an international non-profit and the only North American organization focused exclusively on improving recycling for plastics. APR’s tools & resources help companies design packaging that can be recycled, support innovations that overcome existing recycling challenges, and encourage stable and reliable markets for post-consumer recycled content. Visit plasticsrecycling.org for more information.
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