Setting out for a backpacking trip and then stuffing your bag with energy bars and freeze-dried meals wrapped in plastic is one of the best examples of cognitive dissonance in outdoor recreation. Leave No Trace has preached “pack it out,” but then what? It comes out of the backcountry only to get tossed in with the billions of tons of plastic waste sitting in landfills or getting swept into oceans.   We are trashing our planet, and nature lovers are part of the problem. So where are all the green companies doing compostable packaging for backpacking food?   It turns out that revamping packaging systems is more complicated than people in the food industry realized when they first set out to tackle the issue. Even Patagonia Provisions—one of the outdoor industry’s leaders in sustainability efforts—is struggling. “You have to consider the producer of the product, the machinery they have, the waste-management end of it, and, in the case of food, the barriers the packages provide to keep the food safe,” says Birgit Cameron, Patagonia Provisions’ managing director.   Ever since Patagonia Provisions launched its fruit bars in 2015, it’s been working toward a compostable wrapper. The company is currently on the fourth iteration, and there are still problems. One issue is that the compostable film is just different enough from traditional wrappers that it slows down the manufacturer’s packaging equipment. “The texture and thickness work differently on the machines,” says Cameron. It doesn’t slip as seamlessly through the production line, and that means it takes longer to package the bars, which means the manufacturer has to charge more—since the process is holding up that production line. And price is important: sustainable food should not just be for the rich.   Then there are the other problems. When Kate Flynn left corporate America in 2017 to start Sun and Swell Foods, a snack-food company based in Santa Barbara, California, a big part of her goal was to run a responsible business. She formed Sun and Swell as a B Corp and signed on with 1% for the Planet, an organization of companies that have pledged to donate at least 1 percent of annual sales to environmental nonprofits. “But we were still contributing to the problem of single-use plastics,” she says. “About once a month, I’d  do these really aggressive Google searches, trying to find a solution.” Finally, TIPA Corp, a company based in Israel specializing in compostable packaging, popped up in her search results.   In March of 2019, Flynn committed to all-compostable packaging, intending to have her entire line wrapped in the material by the end of the year. That hasn’t happened. “What we learned is that there are so many more complexities than we ever knew. People think it just costs more, but really that’s the least of the concerns,” she says.   Sun and Swell’s biggest issue has been the life span of the wrappers. TIPA guarantees them for nine months. “But that’s [from] when it comes off the line at the printer. Our experience is that it has been a little less than nine months,” Flynn says. The packages have a little transparent window on them, and as the packages age, the window starts to get milky and look funky. Then, of course, customers are hesitant to buy them. “It turns into a food-waste issue,” she says.   And this is the thing about plastic that makes the whole debate so complicated: it’s been hugely helpful in reducing our global food waste—another massive driver of global emissions. Take, for example, grapes. When they’re packaged in plastic bags, their shelf life is 120 days. Left loose, their shelf life would be ten days. Until we can change our system so we’re more reliant on local food, plastic will be a necessary evil.     There’s also the fact that sealing up food is one great way to ensure that it is safe. When Ashley Lance started her vegan, eco-conscious backpacking meal business Fernweh Food Company last year, she really wanted it to be zero-waste. But Lance’s local USDA officer, who helped her get her products certified as safe to sell, wasn’t convinced that zero-waste sales could ever get the regulatory thumbs-up. “For the USDA to sign off on it, it has to be in an airtight, waterproof container,” she says. For local orders, she stores her company’s food in jars. But because jars are heavy and breakable, shipping them doesn’t make much sense for smaller companies like Lance’s.   Her work-around is shipping each item in reusable muslin bags. Those bags are then sealed into a compostable outer package, which satisfied the USDA. It’s not quite zero waste, but it’s as close as Lance feels she’s going to get with the current regulations. Of course, users can’t make their meals directly in the bags—they’ll need a pot. But Lance says most of her customers see that as a feature, not a bug. On the trail, she dumps her dinner into a reusable silicone bag and adds hot water. She keeps one for sweet things and one for savory in her pack. At the end of her trips, she has almost no plastic garbage to unload.   The fact that small companies like Fernweh and Sun and Swell are devoting themselves to this mission is great, but we really need systematic change. One current problem with compostable packaging is that “compostable” is a nebulous term. Things that compost quickly in an industrial system may take months in your backyard compost pile. And a lot of cities don’t offer compost pickup at all, so these wrappers just sit in landfills. “We have a waste system set up. The problem is that it isn’t quite working,” says Cameron.   Patagonia Provisions is actively looking at whether it can use its Tin Shed Ventures—the company’s venture-capital fund—to kick-start a system purpose-built for compostable wrappers. This might include building industrial composting facilities and encouraging manufacturers to invest in machines that seal compostable packages just as fast as plastic ones. “Like anything we do, being in a system fully so we can work on it to figure out how to change it is sort of what we’re up to,” says Cameron. And because Patagonia Provisions is large, it may be able to create a lucrative market for entrepreneurs making more eco-friendly packaging. “What often happens is that people start to adopt what we find,” she says.   In the meantime, a handful of outdoor brands are engaging with a recycling company called TerraCycle. Brands pay TerraCycle to collect and recycle wrappers and other hard-to-recycle stuff. Right now, Backpacker’s Pantry, Clif Bar, Gu, and Mountain House all participate. TerraCycle will send individual consumers an envelope that they can use to return their wrappers. Those become recycled plastic pellets, which can be melted down and reused. While this is definitely better than packaging going to a landfill, it’s not a perfect system, since it takes energy to melt and ship them. Still, it’s a good step for companies who want to move toward zero waste but are hesitant—or unable—to jump completely in.   But let’s hope that more companies adapt and move toward zero-waste practices sooner rather than later, so we can start enjoying our meals in the mountains without a side of guilt.

PopSockets, maker of expandable phone grips, mobile tech, and lifestyle accessories has partnered with international recycling leader TerraCycle® to create a free recycling program for PopSockets products and packaging, as well as any brand of cellular phone case. As an added incentive, for every shipment of PopSockets waste sent to TerraCycle through the PopSockets Recycling Program, collectors earn points that can be used for charity gifts or converted to cash and donated to the non-profit, school or charitable organization of their choice.   “PopSockets’ mission is to create positive impact, and that means taking responsibility for our products at every stage of their lifecycle,” said David Barnett, PopSockets Founder and CEO. “Leveraging TerraCycle’s expertise, we’re aiming to recycle even more products than we create. We invite customers to recycle PopSockets merchandise and all cell phone cases through our PopSockets Recycling Program.”   Through the PopSockets Recycling Program, consumers can now send in the following products and packaging to be recycled for free:  

• PopGrips®
• PopMinis®
• PopGrip® Slide
• PopWallet® & PopWallet+
• PopChains®
• PopSockets® PopMounts®
• PopSockets® packaging
• Otter + Pop Phone Cases
• PopThirst®
• PopGrip® Lips, PopGrip® Mirror & PopGrip® AirPods Holder
• PopStation®
• Any brand of cellular phone case

  “Through the free recycling program, PopSockets is offering consumers a powerful, sustainable option to divert waste from landfills,” said TerraCycle CEO and Founder, Tom Szaky. “By collecting and recycling items that are typically not recyclable, consumers are given the opportunity to think twice about what is recyclable and what truly is garbage.”

Every T-shirt has a lifecycle. There’s that first fresh-off-the-rack wear, when it feels brand new, followed by the first few washes when things feel extra soft and worn in. Over many sweaty afternoons and subsequent rinse cycles, your go-to, going-out tee transitions to become your favorite workout shirt, until it reaches the point where it definitely shouldn’t be seen in public any more. But instead of tossing your ratty old T-shirt into the trash, there are plenty of other—far more sustainable—things you can do with it, including upcycling.   The reason it’s so important to upcycle versus recycle? “Clothing needs to be sorted into groups of similar material content if they’re to be recycled,” says Tiffany Threadgould, head of design at Terracycle, noting that it can be complicated to figure out how to sort your textiles to ensure they end up in the right place. “While many T-shirts are 100 percent cotton there are definitely cotton-poly and 100 percent poly blends, which would mess up a recycling system.” So even if your T-shirts make it into the recycling bin instead of the plain old trash, there’s no guarantee that they’re actually going to be recycled, which is why it’s more sustainable to find a new life for them to live.   Recycling is important, but falls to third place on the list of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ because it’s more labor intensive,” says Threadgould. “Focusing first on the reduce and reuse is where you can make the most impact. And throwing items away should always be reserved as a last resort, because that depletes precious resources.”   Sure, you can turn your old T-shirts into dish rags, but isn’t it much more fun to put your crafting pants on and transform them into something Pinterest-worthy that you can keep forever? “In general, clothing has sentimental value that can play in to the reuse value of the shirt,” says Threadgould. “Perhaps you’ve outgrown them or they’re stained or faded. With a few cuts and crafty twists, you can reuse that shirt.”   Case in point: Generation T T-shirt guru Megan Nicolay has written two books with more than a hundred different suggestions of what to do with old T-shirts. We whittled the list down to 15 things you can do with old T-shirts that will keep them out of the recycling bin for yet another year. Get those crafting scissors ready!  

1. Turn them into baskets

Woven baskets will run you some big bucks online, but you can make some of your own with some T-shirt fabric and a steady hand. This is more of a 200-level project, but you can learn how to DIY it here.      

2. Give them to your dog

When you’re done with your tees, tie them up and give them to your pup for a toy.    

3. Cut them into headbands

When you feel like you’ve maxed out on the number of times you could wear your favorite workout T-shirt to the gym, cut it up and wear it on your head to keep your sweaty hair out of your face during a workout.    

4. Add some beads

Transition your tee from clothing into a statement accessory by using the strips of fabric as necklace string. Use multiple strands for a piece that really pops.    

5. Sew them into a quilt

Keep all of your favorite sentimental tees close by cutting them into squares and sewing them into a quilt, which will make you feel cozy and nostalgic at the same time.    

6. Use them to hang your plants

Cut your shirts into long strips, then tie them together to hold your favorite hanging plants.      

7. Braid them into bracelets

Cut your T-shirts into thin strips, and use the fabric to make friendship bracelets, which happens to be a truly chill-inducing activity.      

8. Decorate your light fixtures

Give your lamps a bit of boho flair by dressing them up with T-shirt yarn, macrame style.    

9. Make a wall hanging

Another great use for T-shirt yarn? As a wall hanging. Separate your solid color strips into bunches, then tie them around a metal ring (or three) for an accent art piece.      

10. Turn them into tote bags

For a 10-minute T-shirt project you’ll definitely use, turn them into reusable tote bags by cutting off the sleeves and sewing the bottoms together.    

11. Weave them into a rug

Who needs to spend big bucks on an accent rug when you’ve got a bunch of old T-shirts lying around?    

12. Tie dye them

When your white T-shirt just isn’t white anymore, grab a bottle of dye to give it entirely new life.    

13. Turn them into a backpack

Yet another thing you can do with T-shirt fabric: Braid the strands together for the perfect beach backpack, which you’ll want to take everywhere.       

14. Make some pot holders

All you need to do is weave together your T-shirt yarn (remember second grade art class?), and your hands will be forever protected from all that kitchen heat.      

15. Weave a pillow

There are multiple ways you can turn your tee into something to rest your head on. You can sew a pillow into a T-shirt as an easy way to put your favorite graphics on display, or take things to the next level by weaving together strips of fabric in a few different colors and patterns.     If crafting isn’t quite your thing, use your old t-shirts as hair towels as a way to protect your strands and keep them healthy and frizz-free. And when you’re ready to invest in a new white tee, shop our favorites here.

The beauty industry is embracing innovative solutions for tackling waste–and winning more customer loyalty in the process.   There’s no doubt that the beauty industry does a lot of good, from enhancing personal hygiene and contributing to self-esteem, to giving back through charitable causes. There is also no way to ignore the environmental impact packaging from such a massive business has on the Earth. With plastic taking some 400 years to degrade and filling what’s believed to be more than 70 percent of landfills, the prediction that there’ll be more plastic in the ocean than fish by the year 2050 seems devastatingly plausible.   According to TerraCycle, a company that helps brands and individuals recycle and upcycle to reduce the level of unnecessary landfill waste, the global cosmetics industry produces 120 billion units of packaging annually, contributing to the loss of 18 million acres of forest each year.   Motivating consumers to recycle personal care items has challenges. For one, it takes extra effort since these products are often housed in bathrooms, away from the standard kitchen recycle bin. TerraCycle reports that 50 percent of people don’t recycle bathroom waste including shampoo and shower gel bottles because they feel it is inconvenient. That said, the industry has taken responsibility in the past and made an impact. “While statistics are dire, the beauty industry has had success stories with the banning of plastic microbeads in the U.S., U.K. and Canada but has plenty of room for improvement to become environmentally friendly,” says Alex Payne, a spokesperson for TerraCycle.   While swapping plastic for eco-friendly packaging may increase manufacturing costs initially, the increase can likely be offset with potential government subsidies and more customers who prefer sustainable packaging. In fact, the decision to "go green" in formulation, manufacturing practices and packaging could pay off big. Fifty-five percent of people polled in a recent report by J. Walter Thompson Intelligence titled The New Sustainability: Regeneration stated they are more likely to buy beauty products if the company claims to be sustainable. Interestingly, the same report found that 77 percent of people think products with a negative environmental impact should cost more.   Recycling and Reusing   A handful of beauty brands including Burt’s Bees, Eos Products, LimeLife by Alcone and L’Occitane have teamed up with TerraCycle to offer consum- ers easy and free options for recycling. Customers can access a prepaid shipping label from TerraCycle’s website, fill any box with the brand’s cleaned waste and ship it out to be remolded into new products. Herbal Essences, Josie Maran, Garnier, Tom’s of Maine and Weleda are also part of TerraCycle’s free recycling solution. For a fee, TerraCycle offers an option for other cosmetic brands in the form of their zero-waste box. Empty eye shadow palettes, lipstick tubes, makeup brushes and deodorant sticks can be shipped to the company, and thus saved from the landfill.   Just this year, TerraCycle launched an intiative called Loop to introduce a new circular shopping system in Paris and select states within the U.S. designed to eliminate plastic packaging. “The world is in a waste crisis and we can’t recycle our way out of it. We must attack the issue at the root cause, which is single-use packaging,” explains Eric Rosen, spokesperson for Loop. The concept of Loop is like a modern-day milkman delivery system, rebooted with loads of items from personal care to household. Consumers go online and choose the products they’d like to order, which arrive in durable, reusable containers inside Loop’s exclusively designed reusable tote. “Consumers will no longer own the packaging, only the product,” Rosen explains. Beauty brands with products available from Loop include Soapply, Herbal Essences, The Body Shop, Love Beauty and Planet, Ren Clean Skincare and Pantene.   After use, consumers schedule a pickup time and send Loop’s containers to be cleaned, sanitized and reused again and again, removing plastic and shipping cardboard from the equation completely. Loop is currently available in select states and planning on expanding to new cities in 2020. Loop is made possible with the help of partner retailers like Walgreens and Kroger in each market launched. There is no membership or subscription fee; the only cost a consumer incurs is for the product and a refundable deposit for containers, tote and shipping. Brands big and small are stepping up and making commitments to change. Both Unilever and L’Oreìal have promised by the year 2025 to convert plastic packaging to reusable, recyclable or compostable. Esteìe Lauder Companies are on board too, aiming to have 75 to 100 percent of packaging recyclable, reusable or refillable by 2025 and increasing postconsumer recycled material in packaging by up to 50 percent.   Procter & Gamble (P&G) plans to offer 100 percent recyclable packaging by 2030 and has partnered with Loop to offer refillable options. Just this year, P&G’s brand Pantene launched an aluminum bottle for shampoo and conditioner through the service.   Green Materials and Rethinking Plastic   Alternative material options are gaining popularity in the beauty packaging world as brands shift into a “greener” mindset. Bamboo, for example, is biodegradable, compostable and one of the fastest-growing plants in the world. Cosmetic companies like Antonym are using bamboo for eyeshadow and blush palettes and as the base for makeup brushes. Reusable and refillable, glass is an ideal alternative for companies looking to stay clean and minimal, such as RMS Beauty. Like glass, metal is another smart option. Kjaer Weis uses quality metal in makeup palettes meant to be kept and reused as part of the company’s refill system. Already recycled solutions such as paperboard made from recycled paper pulp and recycled plastic are widely used alternatives. Garnier Fructis has adapted this practice for its shampoo and conditioner bottles, with 50 percent of the material coming from postconsumer recycled plastic.   Since plastic isn’t going away overnight, savvy solutions for repurposing are key. The Body Shop recently launched Community Trade recycled plastic from Bengaluru, India, an initiative in partnership with Plastics for Change: “We don’t think plastic–as a material–is bad. In fact, it’s one of the most versatile materials ever made and, if used responsibly, can be sustainable. The problem is when we don’t value plastic and see it as trash, rather than something we can recycle and reuse,” says Lee Mann, global community trade manager for The Body Shop.   With this initiative, The Body Shop also recognizes the human side of the plastic story. The program helps to empower the marginalized waste pickers in Bengaluru, who can receive a fair price for their work, predictable income and access to better working conditions. By the end of the year, The Body Shop will have purchased 250 tons of Community Trade recycled plastic to use in the brand’s 250 milliliter haircare bottles, with plans to scale up purchasing to 900 tons within three years. The bottles created contain 100 percent recycled plastic (excluding the bottle caps) with 15 percent derived from Community Trade recycled plastic. “Brands are starting to be more sustainable and aware of their plastic use. We absolutely want to encourage other brands to start using recycled plastic picked by waste pickers,” Mann says.   It appears that all generations, not just millennials and Generation Z, are taking a stand on sustainability. According to J. Walter Thompson Intelligence’s recent sustainability study, 90 percent of adult consumers think companies and brands have a responsibility to take care of the planet and its people. The same report concluded 91 percent of adults think companies and brands that pollute the environment should be fined.   We have officially entered the age of “less is more.” Retailers must factor sustainability into the brands they work with–and they may even want to go a step further and green their own business. Manufacturers and retailers alike will win by delivering big on product, but light on packaging.

Jan. 20, 2020 Here's a list of things you can do that will lighten your environmental footprint and green up your life! 1. Stop using plastic coffee pods! Use compostable coffee pods or a reusable single cup coffee system, including cotton coffee filters. 2. Minimize household chemicals and waste. Make your own eco-friendly cleaning products: Watch how to make eco-friendly dryer sheets. Watch how to make reusable sweeper pads. Watch how to make a all-natural cleaner with grapefruit and salt. 3. Compost kitchen waste to save landfill space. Create your own compost pile or use one of these local compost services.   4. Replace your lawn with native plants. They don’t need as much water and they support native wildlife. Plant a pollinator garden to provide food for bees and monarch butterflies! Read about North Texans stepping up aid for monarchs. 5. Grow your own organic food. Plant an organic garden even if it’s just a few herbs on your patio. 6. Consume less meat! A plant-based diet is recommended by the UN as the most environmentally friendly, climate-friendly diet.) Not only are you saving animals but a plant-based diet is healthier for you.  Local author Carol Adams has tips for going vegan in middle age but it applies to all ages. 7. Stop drinking bottled water. Use water filters instead.  Read about our favorite water filters. 8. Fix leaky faucets and toilets. Save precious water. 9. Green up your home. Install a programmable thermostat, LED light bulbs and better insulation. 10. Cook your own organic food. It's more sustainable and better for you than eating pre-packaged food. 11. Think before you shop. Choose products made from natural, biodegradable or recyclable materials. Avoid products that will likely just fill up landfill space when their end life is over. 12. Choose quality over convenience. When you need conventional products, choose items that are built to last, made from sustainable materials, have minimal packaging and are energy smart. Here's our list of eco-friendly products for the new year! 13. Minimize trash. Recycle everything that you can. 14. Ramp up your recycling efforts. Look for specialty recycling outlets for items not accepted in recycle bins. For example, plastic bags can be recycled at most grocery stores. Home Depot and Lowes will take batteries and light bulbs. TerraCycle accepts items like toothpaste tubes. Help your school or place of business start a recycling program. Read about how the Fort Worth Botanic Garden set a zero waste goal. 15. Give away rather than throw away. Donate that old couch, stacks of nifty paper, nice clothes, tools. 16. Buy less stuff! Before you buy something, ask yourself - do I really need this? 17. Shop local. Visit the farmer’s market, support small organic farms and food producers. 18. Bring your own shopping bags. Reusable bags are not just for the grocery store. Take them wherever you shop. Keep them by the front door, in your purse or backpack and in your car. 19. Harvest your rainwater. Build your own rain barrel or buy one and use it to water your garden. 20. Drive less. Walk or ride a bike instead of driving. Make each trip count when you do take your car. Carpool! When shopping for a new car, consider an all-electric or a hybrid.

Global Plastic Waste Management Services Market   WiseGuyRerports.com Presents “Global Plastic Waste Management Services Market Insights, Forecast to 2025” New Document to its Studies Database. The Report Contain 158 Pages With Detailed Analysis.   Description   Plastic waste management service is a collective term for various approaches and strategies used to recycle plastic materials that would otherwise be dumped into landfills, or bodies of water, or otherwise contaminate the environment. The idea behind this type of waste management is to utilize those discarded materials to manufacture new plastic products without the need to actually generate additional plastic materials. Doing so can help lower production costs as well as protect the environment.   With shifting preference towards recycled plastic, demand for recycled plastic is anticipated to increase, which in turn, will drive the global plastic waste management market. Various food & beverage companies are focusing on increasing the amount of recycled plastic in their bottles as part of their new sustainable strategy.   Global Plastic Waste Management Services market size will increase to xx Million US$ by 2025, from xx Million US$ in 2018, at a CAGR of xx% during the forecast period. In this study, 2018 has been considered as the base year and 2019 to 2025 as the forecast period to estimate the market size for Plastic Waste Management Services.   This report researches the worldwide Plastic Waste Management Services market size (value, capacity, production and consumption) in key regions like United States, Europe, Asia Pacific (China, Japan) and other regions.   This study categorizes the global Plastic Waste Management Services breakdown data by manufacturers, region, type and application, also analyzes the market status, market share, growth rate, future trends, market drivers, opportunities and challenges, risks and entry barriers, sales channels, distributors and Porter’s Five Forces Analysis.   This report focuses on the top manufacturers’ Plastic Waste Management Services capacity, production, value, price and market share of Plastic Waste Management Services in global market.   The following manufacturers are covered in this report: B.Schoenberg & CO., INC. Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies, Inc. REPLAS Clear Path Recycling PLASgran Ltd. Custom Polymers, Inc. Carbon LITE Industries LUXUS Ltd. wTe Corporation KW Plastic, Inc. Kuusakoski Group Shanghai Pret Composites Co., Ltd. Republic Services, Inc. Reprocessed Plastic, Inc. 4G Recycling Inc. Vanden Global Ltd. TerraCycle The WasteCare Group   Plastic Waste Management Services Breakdown Data by Type Thermosetting Thermoplastic Plastic Waste Management Services Breakdown Data by Application Plastic Waste Heat Energy Generation Recycled Plastics Others   Plastic Waste Management Services Production Breakdown Data by Region United States Europe China Japan Other Regions   Plastic Waste Management Services Consumption Breakdown Data by Region North America United States Canada Mexico Asia-Pacific China India Japan South Korea Australia Indonesia Malaysia Philippines Thailand Vietnam Europe Germany France UK Italy Russia Rest of Europe Central & South America Brazil Rest of South America Middle East & Africa GCC Countries Turkey Egypt South Africa Rest of Middle East & Africa

Old car seats. Cigarette butts. Used contact lenses. Most people think of this kind of detritus as future landfill, but Tom Szaky sees all this and more as recyclable. He’s the CEO and founder of TerraCycle and its newest initiative, Loop. Both are circular economy solutions that bridge the gaps between consumers, corporations, and waste. TerraCycle, founded in 2001, is a private recycling company that focuses on capturing and repurposing hard-to-recycle items by partnering with corporations and governments. Loop, launched publicly in mid-2019, takes on the problem of waste even more aggressively by working with brands to provide reusable packaging for common consumer products — think Tide laundry detergent or Häagen-Dazs ice cream. HBR asked Szaky, a global leader on reducing waste, about what he’s learned about how consumers, companies, and the government are — or aren’t — helping to reduce the massive amounts of waste humans create on a daily basis. In this edited interview, he also offers advice for business leaders who are interested in pursuing circular models. You’re sitting in a unique position between brands and consumers. What conversations are you having on each side? And which side is more resistant to the argument for sustainability? In the past two years I’ve seen a big shift in how consumers view waste. They’ve woken up to all the negatives of garbage and have started to see it as more of a crisis. That said, consumers are still voting with their dollar for things that benefit them personally, like convenience, performance, and overall price. They’re very vocal, but they’re not necessarily shifting their actual purchasing. Now, the vocal nature of the consumer alone does create a really exciting thing: Brands are waking up to this trend. Even more so, lawmakers are waking up and passing legislation that is affecting consumer product companies, like banning plastic bags and straws. In France in a few years, takeaway food packaging — plastic plates, cups, and utensils — will not be used if you eat in restaurants. These laws are then creating ripples across the consumer product retail industry. Is your feeling that governments are filling gaps that businesses have left? Or are they nudging consumers along, encouraging them to take the action they profess to support? It’s more complicated than that. Plastic straws weren’t seen as a problem up until maybe two years ago; then they became the icon of what’s wrong with plastic and disposability. After a huge public outcry, lawmakers started passing legislation banning the straw. Then companies proactively banned straws before even more legislation actually took hold. So a push from consumers led lawmakers to take action and then corporations jumped in. Now the plastic straw is effectively dying. But it took all three nudging each other. Tell me about the kinds of conversations you’re having with investors and other stakeholders as part of starting and leading two companies. What’s it like to be in the sustainability sphere, especially as a new startup? We started developing the concept for Loop just two years ago, which absolutely makes it a startup. TerraCycle is 16 years old and more of a growth company. So I have two different perspectives. TerraCycle has grown every year since the beginning, but in the past two years it has exploded. Corporations that wouldn’t have signed with us before are now signing on. And corporations that are signed on are going deeper. We grew our revenue 30% organically in 2019, compared to 2018, and expect the same in 2020. This is driven primarily by everything moving faster and companies wanting to go deeper versus big new surprises or new industries that have been asleep now waking up. In parallel, we also raised about $20 million for Loop Global and about $20 million for TerraCycle US. The key change there is that investors are looking much more for authentic impact investments. This is entirely correlated to garbage becoming a crisis. I don’t think Loop could have existed even five years ago because of the ask. Essentially, we’re asking CPG [consumer packaged goods] companies and retailers to fundamentally redesign packaging and accept major changes to the economics of packaged goods delivery — in other words, to treat packaging as an asset instead of a cost. Because of changing views on garbage, they’re increasingly willing to say yes to that. So what is happening now in the startup world is that more audacious ideas that solve these issues — like Loop — are on the table. Do you think existing companies are going to be able to make this shift? Or is it going to have to be new companies that are entering the market? Both. I think that we’re going to see some organizations die because of this. Others will pivot. And new companies will fill out the balance, just as with any shift. Look at tech, for instance. How many retailers survived it? Some did a great job, right? And some, like specialty big-box retailers — Toys “R” Us, Linens ’n Things, Staples in Europe, et cetera — died in the process. The key in this instance is to pivot and reinvent the organization, noting that this is easier said than done, as it takes tremendous short-term sacrifice. I believe that it won’t be industries or sectors that pivot versus die, but individual companies. Some organizations, like Nestlé, Unilever, and P&G, are taking these issues seriously and making the difficult decisions that may negatively impact the short term but lay the foundation to be relevant in the long term. Inversely, organizations — like many big food companies in the U.S. — are blind to what’s coming and will likely be overtaken by startups that are building their business models around the new reality that is emerging. When you’re having conversations with investors for TerraCycle or Loop, what are they concerned about? What do they want to know? There’s suddenly a lot more interest in this topic in the investment community, and I think investors would tell you that they really think sustainability is almost a requirement for the future. Fifteen years ago, when we were raising capital for TerraCycle, people invested because of impact and purpose; it was like they were considering giving money to an NGO. Today, investors would tell you that they really think sustainability is a requirement for the future. They are looking at the sustainability index not just as “Oh, I am feeling good about where I’m putting my money” — now it’s moved to sustainability being critical for business longevity. A lot of what we’ve seen major corporations do is market sustainability in that “purpose” bucket, and not in the “business” bucket, with pledges and other high-profile commitments. Is this changing? Are large corporations able to move from the emotional bucket to the business bucket the same way investors are? The most famous of the pledges is the Ellen MacArthur Foundation pledge, which more than 400 businesses and organizations have signed, signaling their intent to eliminate their use of new plastic. It basically says that, by 2025, they will make their products compostable, recyclable, and reusable. And they will significantly increase their use of recycled content by this date. Now, let’s be candid about why they’re pledging. Since waste has become a crisis in the past two years, many companies have come to the position that they have to solve it or they will be legislated out of it. The best way to get ahead is to make future promises, partly because you don’t have to do anything between today and the promise day, right? If everyone promises that by 2025 all this great stuff will happen, they are not really responsible in the present. I’ve talked to chief sustainability officers of some of the world’s largest CPG companies who honestly have no idea how they’re going to pull it off. They have no f—cking idea what they’re going to do and are saying things like, “Well, the industry will figure it out.” That’s scary. Here’s what I think will happen come 2025 with this particular promise. There is a difference between the promises to be “recyclable” and made from “recycled content.” In other words, most companies, via the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, have pledged that by 2025 they will be 100% recyclable and independently made from a high percentage (typically 25%) of recycled content. I think that the majority of companies will say that they made their package “technically recyclable” but that the recycling industry is to blame for not then “practically recycling” them. I think maybe 90% of companies making these promises will fail and then point to the fine print, saying, “Oh, we made our packaging recyclable, but the recycling systems don’t have the capability to recycle it today.” That’s going to create a big reckoning that will piss off consumers even more, backfiring on brands. So those 10% that succeed, how do they do that? They’re just getting ahead of it. Here’s an example: Some companies are now buying futures on recycled plastic so they know they will have the volume, which is an unheard-of thing in procuring plastic. A good example is Nestlé. The key line in their recent press release is this: “To create a market, Nestlé is therefore committed to sourcing up to 2 million metric tons of food-grade recycled plastics and allocating more than CHF 1.5 billion to pay a premium for these materials between now and 2025.” One of the things that interest me about your company is how you collaborate with so many companies. How difficult is this? Could you go it alone? We absolutely need to collaborate. These are systemic problems, and to solve the system you need multi-stakeholder collaboration. Loop could only exist with massive multi-stakeholder collaboration. There would be no other way to pull it off. And I think we need more and more of that. What makes collaborations like this work? Trade groups and consortiums don’t work. The problem with an industry group, at least in my experience, is to get the group together so they can publicly say that there is a multi-stakeholder discussion. But the outcomes are usually nothing. So how do we create true multi-stakeholder system change? Because if you’re going to change the system, you need all the stakeholders to agree. With Loop, we consciously tried to create a multi-stakeholder collaboration. And look at what happened: It’s working. We’re adding a brand every two days since we launched, and most major multinational CPG companies have joined: Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Mars, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, et cetera. We’ve also added a retailer every three weeks since our launch, including retailers around the world. Loop is live in France (via Carrefour) and the U.S. (via Kroger and Walgreens) via e-com, and is expanding in both countries to in-store later this year. It is also launching in Canada (via Loblaw), the UK (via Tesco), Germany (via a retailer we will announce in February), and Japan (via AEON), all this year. And finally, we have seen tremendously positive consumer insights — people want Loop, and they like the experience when they get access to it. I don’t see too many companies with similar models out there yet. Loop is a major systems change that requires a large coalition of multi-stakeholders. That is, no company can do it on their own — everyone has to act together. What I am seeing is a lot of groups calling us and saying, “How did you do the Loop thing, and how can we apply that type of system or process to whatever our topic may be?” They ask this because, typically, multi-stakeholder collaborations are slow and hard to drive results from. What do you tell them? I tell them that you cannot run such a platform by committee. There needs to be a “chair” that makes the decisions, even if the decisions are unpopular, and creates the urgency to make sure everything is moving forward quickly. You also set public deadlines that everyone can agree to. For example, it’s why we launched at the World Economic Forum last year — that was a deadline everyone could align on.

At work, I go through a lot of disposable pens from companies like Bic and Paper Mate. Can these be recycled? How much waste do they produce? Is there a case to make for bringing back the fountain pen as an alternative? What exactly does an ecofriendly pen look like?   —Jonathan in Oakland, California    Bic sells an average of 57 pens per second. It’s hard to recycle pens because they’re too small for machines to sort and they’re made of hard-to-separate materials. You can pay Terracycle to downcycle pens, pencils, and markers (and almost anything) into things like benches. It'd be greener if they would recycle pens into pens.     I scoured the internet for a week for better solutions and called pen and ink creators. The Greenest Pen award (drumroll please) goes to Bonnie’s Bits and Things. She collects bamboo (a weed) from people who don’t want them. She teaches kids to dip 100-percent bamboo pens in soy sauce because it doesn’t stain. The greenest My Boss Might Let Me Use This Ink award goes to The Constant Forager who uses walnuts she forages, lists all ingredients (which sound edible), and packs inkwells with lichen instead of plastic padding. I asked if both would ship in reused (even ugly) packaging. She said yes!   The next greenest pens are Pilot’s B2P refillable pens made with 89-percent post-consumer recycled waste from plastic bottles (the highest percent I found). But each nonrecyclable refill comes in plastic packaging. If you have the budget, you can try piston-fill fountain pens with a window showing the ink level. Avoid ones with single-use ink cartridges, which are nonrecyclable. According to economist Jonathan Deans, it’s hard to say if they're greener than Bic nonrefillable pens. Also, pens in general might be made with metals from polluting mines with human rights violations.   So yes, you can borrow my weed pen.

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• When it comes to packaging, aesthetics matter.
• With Loop, companies treat packaging like an asset.
• Brands are using Loop to learn about customer habits.

  When he founded TerraCycle in 2001, Tom Szaky was in the business of keeping tough-to-recycle products out of landfills. In 2019, he expanded that mandate with a service called Loop, which focuses on reusing packaging instead of merely recycling it. In partnership with several well-known brands, Loop offers household goods from olive oil to laundry detergent in reusable containers that are either delivered direct to consumers or available through two major retail outlets, then collects, cleans and refills them—much like a modern-day milkman. When Szaky sought to better understand why people were purchasing items through Loop, he was surprised by the results. Survey data revealed that two-thirds of Loop customers were mainly drawn to the program because of its packaging design; only one-third prioritized the sustainability aspect. Since Loop is all about saving the planet by eliminating waste, Szaky had expected the inverse. “A better experience with packaging is the primary driver,” Szaky told Adweek. “The secondary driver is sustainability.” Earlier this week, during a presentation at the National Retail Federation’s annual conference in New York, Szaky stressed the importance of aesthetics in consumer decision-making. While people often buy shampoo twice as often as they buy conditioner, Loop shoppers purchase an equal amount of Pantene shampoo and conditioner, according to Szaky. Why? Although he didn’t disclose exact figures, internal polling revealed that people thought the bottles—which come in a matching gold-and-white color scheme, and feature images of sea life—looked good together. But it’s not just about beauty. Szaky argued that tubs of Häagen-Dazs ice cream sold on Loop are simply better than the typical cardboard cartons found at grocery stores because they’re dual-layered, providing thermal insulation so that consumers’ hands remain warm while the ice cream stays frozen. The inside of the container is also concave, making the ice cream easier to scoop out. Szaky added that even the product itself can benefit from better packaging. The team at Coca-Cola apparently told him Coke tastes best in a glass bottle, then aluminum, then plastic. One key change that allows for better packaging design through the Loop system, as opposed to a convenience store or vending machine, is the transfer of package ownership from consumer to manufacturer, Szaky said. When a company is responsible for a durable container meant for multiple uses, it’s treated like an asset as opposed to the cost of goods sold. Since Loop requires a security deposit with each purchase, companies are given extra leeway to invest even more money into their packaging design, generating better functions and features. “Can you imagine what you could do with a package budget of $30 per unit?” he said. He noted that customers have shown little to no sensitivity to the deposit price, either. A can of Clorox disinfecting wipes, for instance, costs $5.49 to purchase, plus an additional $10 deposit. Despite this, Szaky said Clorox wipes are one of the top five best selling products on the site. Last week, another Clorox brand, Glad, began selling sandwich bags on Loop for $4.99 with a $10 deposit. Once ordered, consumers receive 100 plastic bags in a square metal tin, along with a yellow zippered pouch to put the used bags in for recycling later. According to Nick Higgins, Glad’s marketing director, the package took six weeks to design, and consumer feedback throughout the process was positive. “If you think about our traditional manufacturing system, it’s been engineered to deliver products in a way that people use them and then it’s their responsibility for how they ultimately want to dispose of them,” Higgins said. While it’s still too early to tell how Glad’s metal tin is performing on Loop, Higgins said the brand is excited to gain insights into how people might reuse its products. “As a brand, we want to continue to make progress in this area,” he said. “Using something like Loop as a learning partner to understand consumer habits and practices, and the business models associated with that, is what makes this really attractive to us.” Loop, which debuted in May 2019 in select cities in the U.S. and France, is scheduled to roll out in the U.K., Canada, Germany and Japan later this year. Presently, the platform works with retailers Walgreens and Kroger, and about 100 major CPG conglomerates, including Pepsi, Nestle, Unilever and Procter & Gamble. While Loop has yet to make an official announcement, Szaky said the company will soon reveal new partnerships with a fast-food company and high-end cosmetics brand.         Szaky added that since Loop began, it has, on average, added a new brand every two days and a new retailer every three weeks. While the program remains in test mode, he’s optimistic that Loop will continue to grow. “Disposability is our competition,” he said. “It’s an easy enemy to hate, thank God.”

Três pioneiros em sustentabilidade levaram os participantes do NRF Retail’s Big Show, em uma jornada por alguns impressionantes modelos de negócios da cadeia de suprimentos.