As we look at the news flow on recycling, we see many initiatives to collect, sort, and reuse polymers, whether for like-for-like applications, pyrolysis, or energy. What we do not see enough of, in our view, are initiatives to increase the pool of recycled plastics through packaging standardization or the elimination of compounds or colors that make recycling more challenging. Recycling can be improved by better collection and sorting methodologies and technologies. Still, the rate-limiting step will eventually be the pool of materials fit for recycling, and this is particularly important for like-for-like mechanical recycling. The ironic piece here is that the consumer staples and beverage companies call for higher recycled content and are primarily responsible for the amount of recyclable material in the market. If the packagers were to focus on sustainability rather than the unique look and feel of their packaging, we would see a material change in the volumes of recyclable polymers. This might come at the expense of some of the compounders, especially those with an extensive packaging component to their customer base, but it might also impact specific polymers and we would highlight polystyrene as a particularly vulnerable material as almost any application for which polystyrene is used today could be replaced with PET, polyethylene and/or polyethylene – all of which are larger volume polymers that are easier to recycle. The polystyrene industry is doing a good job of promoting recycling initiatives, but this may not be enough.
