The new Dolco ProPlus egg carton features 25 percent PCR polystyrene.

Tekni-Plex Consumer Products, headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania, has introduced a new version of its Dolco ProPlus egg carton containing 25 percent postconsumer recycled (PCR) foam polystyrene (PS), which debuted during the International Production & Processing Expo in Atlanta Jan. 25-27.

“We have a responsibility to lead the way by innovating products that help maintain the integrity of the food supply chain while also minimizing environmental impact,” says Jay Arnold, vice president and general manager at Dolco Packaging. “This exciting new venture into polystyrene PCR is another alternative we can now offer customers.”

According to a news release from Tekni-Plex, the new packaging has the same performance level and characteristics as its cartons that use conventional resin.

“These cartons can be recycled multiple times through advanced recycling without compromising quality or performance, while also supporting the packaging industry’s goal of moving toward a true circular economy,” Arnold adds.

Dolco Packaging facilities will serve as collection points for PS to use in these cartons, offering both mail-in and drop-off options. Tekni-Plex reports that at least one large egg packer plans to use the Dolco ProPlus egg carton with PCR PS.

The company says it plans to continue to promote the use of PCR in its products. Dolco also offers egg cartons that feature 100 percent PCR polyethylene terephthalate.

Paper recycling advocate Thomas Braun has served 30 years with Germany’s BVSE.

Germany-based recycling association the Bundesverband Sekundaerrohstoffe und Entsorgung e.V. (BVSE, or Federal Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Waste Management) says its managing director Thomas Braun started the new year by celebrating 30 years of service with recycling organizations.

BVSE Executive Director Eric Rehbock congratulated the 60-year-old Braun and thanked him for his commitment to the interests of the association’s members “with heart and soul and a clear line.”

Rehbock, in a BVSE news release, calls Braun well-connected, loyal, obliging and with great diplomatic skills. “He made a decisive contribution to the success of the association,” states the BVSE, adding, “Together with the Executive Committee, he is looking forward to further years and joint successes” at the association.

Braun, who studied business administration, had his first contact with the recycling industry in 1991 at the Vereinigung fuer Wertstoffrecycling GmbH (VFW, or Association for the Recycling of Recyclable Materials) in Cologne, Germany.

He then moved to the Bundesverband Papierrohstoffe e.V. (BVP, or Federal Association for Paper Raw Materials), also based in Cologne. BVSE calls that group the predecessor of today’s BVSE. Braun served initially as a consultant, became deputy managing director in 1996 and managing director in 2001.

“Early on, Braun represented the interests of BVSE members beyond national borders,” states the group. It notes Braun was a general delegate of the Paper Division in the Brussels-based Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) for about 15 years and continues to represent the BVSE there as part of the BIR’s International Environmental Council.

Braun also served for more than four years as a vice president of the Brussels-based European Recovered Paper Association (ERPA). Since 2015, he has been a board member of the Brussels-based European Recycling Industries Confederation aisbl (EuRIC), whose member associations elected him as their vice president in 2019.

Paperboard firm says its wax-free Greencoat product boosts meat packaging recyclability.

United Kingdom-based DS Smith is displaying its recyclable poultry packaging product, Greencoat, at the International Production & Processing Expo in Atlanta Jan. 25-27. The company says it also is previewing new products in what it calls its expanding line of wax alternative and plastic replacement products.

DS Smith calls Greencoat 100 percent recyclable and food-contact safe for protein (meat) packaging. Other samples on site in Atlanta will include the firm’s first corrugated expanded polystyrene (EPS) replacement cooler, BRRR Box and Greentote, which it calls a fiber-based plastic bag replacement for supermarkets, retail and BOPIS (buy online, pick up in-store) applications.

“We’re thrilled to showcase our customer’s packaging at IPPE and congratulate them for choosing a sustainable solution like Greencoat, which helps them to reach their corporate ESG and sustainability goals,” says Adam Olson, a sales director with DS Smith North America, which is based in Atlanta.

Greencoat was originally developed for the poultry industry, says DS Smith, and it subsequently “has redefined the possibilities for packaging and supply chain performance of cold and wet products, and continues to outperform other recyclable wax-replacement solutions,” claims the firm.

“Our deep experience in successfully developing Greencoat solutions affords us the ability to quickly respond to consumer demand for sustainable, recyclable and reusable packaging to the B2C [business-to-consumer] market with our new BRRR Box and Greentote products,” Olson says. “We’re excited to get feedback on them from attendees.”

The bill would provide an updated definition and methods of advanced recycling facilities for the state.

South Carolina lawmakers have passed a bill that would encourage advanced recycling projects in the state.

The Solid Waste Policy and Management Act, S. 525, provides an updated definition and methods of advanced recycling, redefining it as manufacturing rather than solid waste disposal. The bill passed both the state Senate and House votes, and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is considering the bill.

According to S. 525, an advanced recycling facility “must demonstrate financial responsibility prior to being issued a permit for the advanced recycling facility or prior to the advanced recycling facility being placed in operation.”

It also states that the facility “must establish a cash trust fund under the control of the department or obtain a surety bond for which the department is the sole beneficiary, sufficient in form and amount to meet all reasonably foreseeable costs of cleanup, environmental remediation, firefighting, groundwater or surface water contamination, private property contamination, public health impacts, and displacement and relocation of affected persons and any other reasonably foreseeable costs associated with the operation, management or abandonment of any pyrolysis and gasification facilities, including … the operation and storage of postuse polymer, plastic polymer or incidental contaminants or impurities.”

If McMaster signs S. 525 into law, South Carolina will be the 15th state to pass legislation that redefines advanced recycling as manufacturing rather than solid waste disposal.

The Washington-based American Chemistry Council (ACC) has expressed support for South Carolina’s S. 525, noting that it will accelerate advanced recycling projects in the state.

“This legislation positions South Carolina to foster private-sector investment in advanced recycling facilities, new jobs for residents and increased recycling rates statewide,” says Joshua Baca, ACC’s vice president of plastics.

Craig Cookson, senior director of plastics sustainability at the ACC, adds that this legislation also has the potential to reduce the amount of plastic scrap from going to landfill in South Carolina. He says about 280,000 tons of plastic scrap currently go to landfill in that state.

According to Cookson, several other states are considering advanced recycling legislation, including Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York and West Virginia.

Cookson says having a clear regulatory framework for advanced recycling in the state will make it easier for companies that want to invest in advanced recycling projects.  

The company is working to offer EVR-Green carts with fully recycled lids and wheels as well.

Toter, a provider of waste and recycling containers based in Charlotte, North Carolina, has introduced the EVR-Green 100 percent recycled cart body. The lids and wheels also contain some recycled content; however, Toter has not specified the percentage of recycled content used in those parts. The company says it is working to offer EVR-Green carts that also feature fully recycled lids and wheels in the future.

Manufactured with a variety of recycled materials, the company says the two-wheeled cart is the “first and only fully recycled cart body and fully recyclable cart on the market.” According to Toter, the company made a commitment to reduce its overall virgin resin use by 25 percent starting this year in an effort to drive down its carbon emissions based on a 2020 life cycle assessment the company performed.

The company says it is securing a combination of postindustrial and postconsumer resin for the EVR-Green carts. The carts come in 32-, 48-, 64- and 96-gallon models.

According to a news release from Toter, the EVR-Green features Toter’s Advanced Rotational Molding process, ensuring a stronger and more durable performance than receptacles that feature an injection-molded design. The carts are being manufactured at two of the company's facilities in Statesville, North Carolina, and Acuña, Mexico.

Toter says the EVR-Green also features a UV-stable, stress-free and zero-pressure single-piece design. The container walls have a consistent thickness and are resistant against corrosion and chemicals. It also comes with Toter’s Rugged Rim, sealed stop bar journals and a granite finish.

The cart will initially be available in black. Toter says the EVR-Green is an ideal selection for a variety of end users, including municipalities, residential users, commercial facilities, industrial facilities and waste haulers.

“Toter’s 100 percent recycled EVR-Green cart body is a sustainability game-changer for the waste collection industry,” says Nick Daddabbo, Toter’s director of product management. “We have been hard at work to develop a cart that will uphold the quality buyers rely on from our brand while providing a product they can feel good about using.”