Dive Brief:
- As reported by Environmental Leader, the National Association for PET Container Resources has released figures that show the recycling of plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has grown by 53% in the past 12 years. 31.8% of all PET bottles were recycled in 2012.
- Environmental Leader reports that the price for this used commodity has increased to $0.77 cents per pound, whereas current pricing for new PET is $0.72 cents per pound.
- A report issued by Smithers Pira projects that the global PET packaging market will expand by 2019. Environmental Leader cites figures that estimate markets will be worth $60 billion by 2019; in 2014, markets drew in $48.1 billion.
Dive Insight:
Environmental Leader breaks down some reasons behind the increased worth of used PET materials: There are too many new PET bottles saturating the market, due to overzealous investors who expected demand to increase; there is also an increase in bottle deposits as more states adopt bottles laws. Recycling has become more prevalent over the years, due to simplified collection methods that create a consumer base that is more willing to recycle. It is also interesting to note that as manufacturers are required to use a percentage of recycled PET to form new products, the demand for recycled pellets rises.
