Only about 2% of U.S. households can currently recycle film and flexible plastics, largely due to limited infrastructure and a lack of strong end markets—an issue California must urgently address to meet its ambitious SB 54 recycling targets or face steep penalties.
Category: Waste 360
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Frontline food industry workers, who witness waste daily, offer valuable insights that can drive meaningful food waste reduction when actively engaged. The Pacific Coast Food Waste Commitment’s pilot program, supported by WWF, showed that empowering these employees fosters cultural change, improves efficiency, and delivers both environmental and financial benefits.
SoCalGas has selected Organic Energy Solutions for California’s first in-state renewable natural gas (RNG) project approved under SB 1440, which mandates that utilities procure a share of RNG from local organic waste sources. The San Bernardino facility will convert industrial and food waste into clean energy, supporting California’s broader climate goals to reduce methane emissions and landfill waste.
The waste industry is no stranger to new factors entering the space and changing how different companies handle materials. So far in 2025, things are moving very quickly with changes to policies, new tariffs, and the ever-rising costs of business, operation, and more. At the Plastics Recycling Conference this week, Emily Friedman took the stage to help keep us up to speed on the breakneck pace changes in the industry can have, price trends, and what the next 18 months may look like for U.S. RPET, sustainability commitment, legislation, and trade trends.
The PET recycling industry is seeing record-high recycling rates and increased demand for recycled PET (rPET), driven by corporate commitments and legislative mandates, but meeting future goals will require significant investments in collection and processing infrastructure. Companies like Republic Services are pioneering integrated recycling projects, while the industry pushes for better collection systems and advancements in PET recycling technology to support a more circular economy.
In this Waste360 Q&A, Bridget Croke, managing director at Closed Loop Partners, names some of the industries leading the charge and highlights ideas they are testing along their journey.
Dr. Volker Rehrmann of TOMRA Recycling highlights advancements in decarbonizing aluminum recycling and emerging solutions for lesser-known material streams, including textiles and wood.