More than 258 tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) was produced in 2014, and the United States generated a 35 percent recycling rate with 89 million tons of MSW recycled or composted — an increase of 31 million tons during the past 20 years, according to the Stamford, Conn.-based nonprofit Keep America Beautiful. The continued push to reuse materials and reduce packaging waste also is proliferating throughout the beverage supply chain.
“There is a growing demand to reduce packaging waste,” says Nigel Pritchard, group chief executive officer at London-based Petainer Holdings. “This is prompting wide-ranging discussions about how to improve consumer recycling, increase the use of post-consumer recyclate as well as alternative systems such as refillable bottles. The refillable market is particularly strong in Germany, thanks to both social and cultural norms, as well as the government’s support. Other countries also use refillable bottles, so this is a model which could be adopted elsewhere in the world.”