Loop represents a seismic shift in product consumption to a circular economy model—for ecommerce and retail—with reusable, luxury packaging at its core.

The new Loop circular shopping platform—unveiled today at the World Economic Forum in Davos—enables consumers to buy their favorite products in durable, not disposable, packaging. Supported by top brand owners such as Nestlé, Coca Cola, Unilever and Procter & Gamble, Loop relies on premium and long-lasting packaging that is designed for multiple reuse before ultimately being recycled. Loop is a business venture of recycling/upcycling and waste management company TerraCycle. Taking an audacious first step in solving what he sees as a global waste crisis that has been growing more than half a century, TerraCycle founder and CEO Tom Szaky recreates the “21st century milkman” by collaborating with more than 20 partners that represent more than 40 brands, global retailers, and package delivery and waste management companies. On top of massive environmental benefits as determined by lifecycle assessments, Loop elevates the consumer’s experience with the brand and its high-end reusable packaging. The shopping platform will launch this spring in two pilot markets—New York and Paris—with additional expansion underway. In an exclusive interview (see video at the top of this page), Szaky… • Tells us how Loop was developed and why; • Identifies the root causes of waste; • Explains how Loop challenges the idea of who “owns” product packaging—from consumer back to the brand; • Outlines the price-value equation for consumers, brands and retailers; and • Shares Loop’s additional growth plans, including expansion in the United Kingdom and Japan. The 43-minute video above showcases several brand’s Loop packages (some throughout, but most starting at 40:31) and also identifies the 20+ partners involved so far. Nestlé is one of the initial partners. Tommy See Tho, packaging manager at the Nestlé Product Technology Center for Ice Cream, has been working on the project from the beginning and designed the Loop packaging for five Haagen-Dazs products: non-dairy options Chocolate Salted Fudge, Coconut Caramel and Mocha Cookie; as well as traditional favorites Vanilla and Strawberry. Why participate in Loop? See Tho explains, “Nestlé is working to reduce its environmental impact in all its business operations, while also finding innovative new ways to connect with and provide great products to consumers. As part of these efforts, Nestlé is proud to join TerraCycle as a founding partner of Loop.” It took packaging specialists from Nestlé’s Product Technology Center for Ice Cream in Bakersfield, CA, one year to revolutionize the Häagen-Dazs pint to bring the brand to the Loop platform with a reusable container. See Tho tells us that the package—etched with the familiar Häagen-Dazs brand tapestry and design—is made of stainless steel and features a twist-off top. The metal canister keeps ice cream cold much longer than traditional paper-based ice cream packaging. “When creating more sustainable packaging, we also wanted to prioritize the consumer experience,” See Tho says. “For example, when opened, the package is designed so ice cream melts more quickly at the top to provide the perfect texture for enjoyment. The container is double-walled which keeps the ice cream cold but also makes the outside of the canister pleasant to hold. The metal lid is easy to open—it juts out so there’s a higher surface area to hold and twist. And, we rounded the corners of the container to make it easy to scoop and enjoy.”   The Häagen-Dazs double-wall stainless steel container keeps ice cream cold for a long time outside the freezer yet is comfortable to hold.   See Tho’s colleague, Walter Peterson, who is packaging sustainability manager at Nestlé USA, will be speaking at WestPack 2019 (Feb. 5-7; Anaheim, CA) at 1:00 - 1:55 p.m. on Tues., Feb. 5. In his presentation “How Nestlé Is Innovating Its Way to 100% Recyclable or Reusable Packaging,” Peterson will talk about Loop and about the company’s ambitious goal of moving to 100% recyclable or reusable packaging by 2025. So how does Loop work? In addition to the high-level interview with Szaky in the video above, multiple people at TerraCycle provide more details about this ground-breaking development.   Have consumers experienced this concept? If so, what was their reaction? TerraCycle: We’ve been running Consumer Insight Testing over the last year (12 months in Greater NYC and six months in Greater Paris). The majority of consumers who have tested Loop like the platform and name three major hooks in varying orders: convenience, premium products and no waste.   Which brands are participating? TerraCycle: These are the initial partners. However, partners are continually being added. Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Unilever, Mars Petcare, The Clorox Co., The Body Shop, Coca-Cola European Partners, Mondelēz Intl., Danone, Jacobs Douwe Egberts, Pladis, Lesieur, BIC, Beiersdorf, People Against Dirty, Nature’s Path, Thousand Fell, Greenhouse, Grilliance, Burlap & Barrel Single Origin Spices, Cozie and Preserve; retailer Carrefour; primary logistics and transportation company UPS and sustainable resource management company Suez.   Procter & Gamble has created reusable, refillable packaging for 11 of its most popular products as part of a new effort that aims to change the world’s reliance on single-use packaging and disposable waste. (Photo: Business Wire)   How can other brands get involved? TerraCycle: Loop participants must apply and be accepted into the platform. Brands interested in getting involved are welcome to contact the Loop Business Development team. Please email Anthony.Rossi@TerraCycle.com.   Are there product categories better or less suited to participating in Loop and why? TerraCycle: Any product category can be integrated into Loop. Currently Loop operations are flexible enough to handle ambient, chilled and frozen supply chains, as well as [temperature-]control items.   You say some packaging is being “scientifically” designed. Explain more, please. TerraCycle: For example, Nestlé partnered with TerraCycle to create brand-new packaging for its Haagen-Dazs brand that will keep ice cream frozen without the use of conventional refrigeration for an extended period of time—which is essential for doorstep delivery. The Loop Tote is also scientifically designed and, coupled with the Haagen-Dazs package, it enables the ice cream to stay frozen longer.   Who designs the packaging? Does each brand create its own packaging or is there a Loop or third-party design firm involved? TerraCycle: Each brand is responsible for designing its own packaging. Loop acts as a consultant in supporting each brand’s packaging innovation.   Durable graphics on Seventh Generation's soup pumps withstand aggressive cleaning between fills.   How does the package design take into consideration user experience or package functionality, as well as where the product is used or stored? TerraCycle: We encourage each Loop brand to design the most premium, durable, innovative packages to give the consumer the best experience possible.   Do different brands (of shampoo, for example) all use the same style package? How do brands maintain their image/equity/branding? TerraCycle: As of now, there is only one brand per category. Packaging style is up to the brand and Loop encourages them to be innovative and creative.   Are the packages direct-printed or do they have labels? If labels, are they durable, too, or are they easy to remove and reapply? TerraCycle: All packages are intended to be zero waste. Loop advises brands to utilize etching and printing.   Are all the packages rigid or is flexible packaging an option? Are flexible packages durable enough to be cleaned and reused? TerraCycle: All packaging in Loop is durable and all packaging material is agnostic. Brands/partners can use the material of its choosing provided it’s durable. Flexibility doesn’t necessarily equate to bad—that is, silicon is flexible but hyper durable.   How many minimum trips does the packaging have to withstand? How is it determined/tested that the package will, indeed, survive that many uses/reuses? TerraCycle: Packages are designed with durability in mind. The lifespan of each package will vary depending on each. There are variables in lifespan including aesthetics that can cause a package to be taken out of circulation and recycled. Loop partners use materials that can be recycled and turned back into a future pack at end of life.   Can packs at end of life be recycled into other products, following the TerraCycle model? Or does it have to be package-to-package recycling only? TerraCycle: The concept of the model is there is no waste. So, anything generated in the platform has a recycling solution.  Some things will not be package-to-package, but all will be recycled.   Just how durable are these packages? Scuffs and other visual defects could be a deterrent to some consumers in the whole reuse consumption concept. TerraCycle: Durability varies by package and consumers participating in Loop are aware the packaging is reused. It is determined by the brand when the package is taken out of circulation and recycled. The exact number of times is dependent on the specific packaging.   Signal innovated the product, a single dose of toothpaste in a "tab," as well as creating a reusable jar.   If consumers return the package for refilling/reuse once it’s empty, won’t they run out of product? Or is the concept to create a pool of packages that are reused for/by different consumers? For that matter, is the concept to create a pool of packages that are used/reused for/by different brands? TerraCycle: Loop brings to market a new subscription model: subscription based on consumption. Since the empty packages are returned to Loop, we are aware of consumers’ consumption rates and replenish only when they have finished the product. The target for turnaround is two days.   Will Loop use parcel carriers for product distribution or is it all direct delivery by Loop? TerraCycle: In the United States, Loop has partnered with UPS for its delivery.   What about Paris? TerraCycle: In Paris we have a delivery partner, but UPS is not the primary delivery partner.   Will Loop be doing the fulfillment/shipping of these products or will the brands have that responsibility? TerraCycle: All Loop products are stored at the Loop warehouse and sent to the consumer from the Loop warehouse. Loop receives empty packages back from consumers, sorts them, cleans them and returns the clean packages to the brands to be refilled.   How many Loop facilities are there and where are they located? TerraCycle: There are four Loop facilities: a warehouse in central NJ and a cleaning facility in Eastern PA; and a warehouse in the outskirts of Paris and a cleaning facility in Eastern France.   Who pays for shipping? Anything available like the Amazon Prime example of a membership with free shipping? TerraCycle: The consumer pays for shipping. However, the more product ordered—and the more full each Tote—the less the cost of shipping.   Who will be doing the cleaning and refilling? TerraCycle: All packaging is cleaned by Loop’s proprietary cleaning system.   Was or is there a need for any new type of packaging machinery to handle the cleaning, handling or refilling? TerraCycle: Yes, there was a need to develop new packaging machinery to handle the cleaning. The cleaning system is state-of-the-art and designed specifically for Loop packaging. Loop has designed cleaning processes specifically for Loop products. All packaging is sanitized and adheres to strict brand audits.   PepsiCo's Quaker cereal replaces the typical and often-criticized bag-in-box with a steel canister that is easy to open and pour from—and then can be resealed to keep the product fresh.   For any food or beverage products, how will brands ensure that packages are properly cleaned before refilling? How are they able to guarantee safety? What more can you tell us about the custom cleaning technologies developed by Loop scientists? TerraCycle: Loop’s state-of the-art cleaning systems have been scientifically developed to sanitize each item. The cleaning process was built in response to the stringent quality assurance controls of each of the brand partners. The system is proprietary, so we can’t provide more information. Loop partners with some of the world’s biggest brands and those brands have very stringent standards to which Loop adheres. All packages inside the tote are sealed and must pass strict quality assurance.  There will also be a tamper-evident seal on the Loop Tote to ensure the Loop Tote was not tampered with before opening.   Will this be for any consumer-initiated sales or only for recurring/subscription purchases? TerraCycle: Each product has a one-time purchase and subscription option.   What more can you tell me about the “groundbreaking technology” used for recycling the packaging? TerraCycle: Here are a few examples of some of the items being recycled for the first time through new and innovative technology. • Gillette/Venus Razor Blades: Through Loop, razor blades will be recyclable for the first time in France. • Always Pads: Through Loop, panty liners and pads will be recyclable for the first time in France. • Pampers: Through Loop, used baby diapers will be recyclable for the first time in France. • Oral-B Electric Toothbrush and CLIC Manual Toothbrush: Loop will collect used toothbrush heads and recycle them.

In late February at the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, Tom Szaky, Founder and CEO of TerraCycle, Inc., unveiled what could be one of the most significant and disruptive advances in packaging to date. Along with a number of the world’s largest Consumer Packaged Goods companies and retailers, TerraCycle has created Loop™, a first-of-its-kind shopping platform that will enable consumers to responsibly consume products in customized, brand-specific, durable packaging that is collected, cleaned, refilled, and reused. The platform will launch in France and in the northeastern U.S. this spring as a pilot, offering more than 300 products in reusable packaging from such heavy-hitters as Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, Unilever, PepsiCo, Mondelēz International, and Danone, to name a few, as well as from smaller companies. The products will be available through the Loop e-commerce site as well as through retail partners’ e-commerce sites and brick-and-mortar locations. The Loop platform is designed to transform the relationship between consumers and packaging, with the consumer now borrowing the package from the brand owner, much like the milkman model. Through its circular system, Loop offers the convenience of single-use packaging while at the same time removing the responsibility from the consumer of disposing the empty packaging. It gets to the root of packaging waste, rather than trying to manage waste through recycling and other methods after it’s been created. Loop is also proving to have an extraordinary effect on package design. “It’s not just about eliminating waste; it’s about enabling the future,” says Szaky. “What brands have really started to see is that this is a platform through which they can commercialize innovation in packaging that was never possible in a disposable package—it was not even conceivable.” Metal containers for Häagen-Dazs ice cream that keep contents cold, toothbrushes with removable, replaceable heads from Oral B, and a stainless-steel Clorox package that keeps wipes wetter longer are just some of the innovations created for Loop. Enhancing the consumer experience, reimagined packaging for products such as Pantene, Seventh Generation, and Crest transform the products into premium, luxury items. A vision for a world without waste For 15 years, recycling company TerraCycle has promoted and advanced the idea of a world without waste. It offers a range of free programs for the collection and recycling of hard-to-recycle materials, creating new products from the waste. Its most recent project was to establish the world’s largest supply chain for collecting and recycling ocean plastics, which are used by P&G for its Head & Shoulders haircare product bottles and its Fairy dish soap containers, as well as for packaging for Unilever’s prestige REN Clean Skincare line. While these efforts are critically important, Szaky says they are not enough to reach the goal of a world without waste. Hence, TerraCycle created Loop—a circular economy shopping platform whose time has come. “It was far less difficult than I thought it would be to get CPGs and retailers to invest in the platform,” he shares. “It’s like the world is ready for it.” Szaky says he believes there were three factors that influenced the decision by CPGs to participate, even though it involved a complicated and expensive commitment. First was their trust in TerraCycle, built through longstanding relationships. “They knew we were not just a ‘fly-by-night’ operation,” he says. Second was the packaging crisis brought on by the issue of ocean plastics—a topic that didn’t exist three or four years ago. “People always cared about waste, but it’s more of a crisis now,” Szaky says. “And companies at their board levels are declaring it as a crisis in a way that’s never been done. In addition, there’s also a lot of legislation in the pipeline around anti-disposability [of packaging].” The third factor, as mentioned earlier, was brand owners’ realization of the functional and aesthetic innovation opportunities afforded by reusable packaging. “What packaging people love about this is that now it’s not a race to the bottom on a price per unit, which it sort of was before. It was always how to make the pack cheaper,” says Szaky. “With Loop, cost is not the primary question. The primary question is, how durable is it?” Design for reuse To enter Loop as a manufacturer, the first “rule,” Szaky explains, is that you must move to a reusable package—“that’s simply not negotiable,” he adds. Each CPG partner is responsible for their own package design, aided by guidelines and best practices developed by TerraCycle and logistics partner UPS. Through testing procedures conducted at its Package Design and Test Lab in Addison, IL, UPS identified solutions to issues related to shipping primary packaging via e-commerce. TerraCycle enumerates some of these suggestions in a design brief it provides brand owner partners when they sign on to Loop. What TerraCycle looks for in a finished package design is durability, cleanability, and a positive Life Cycle Analysis. “Those are the three things we watch for,” says Szaky. “But then everyone gets to do everything they could ever want to in a pack. You get a far greater range of design choices, because you’re not restricted to a tiny little price. So, a $1 package with 10 uses is 10 cents per use, but a $5 package with 100 uses is 5 cents per use. That’s actually pretty neat in the sense of being able to change the relationship with the economics of packaging.” The goal for a Loop package is to be able to withstand 100-plus uses, which is not such a stretch if you consider how many times a consumer might refill a reusable water bottle. “Here’s the point,” says Szaky, “once you get to 100 uses, it’s actually not that hard to get into the thousands. It’s hard to know, because we haven’t been able to prove 10,000 uses. For now, we’re aiming for 100 or more uses for every container.” The three most common types of materials being used for Loop packaging are, in order, stainless steel and aluminum, glass, and engineered plastics such as polycarbonate. So far, materials such as flexibles, disposable plastics, fibers, or leathers have not shown up in any Loop packaging. Given that the aim of Loop is zero waste, the tote in which products are delivered and empty containers are returned is also reusable. Consumer convenience Another factor that makes Loop so timely is consumers’ growing acceptance and use of e-commerce for CPG products. Loop will have its own e-commerce sites—Loopstore.com in the U.S. and maboutiquelook.fr in France—and Loop products will also be available on some CPG and retail partner websites. Retail partners such as Carrefour in France, Tesco in the U.K., and others will also be selling Loop products in their physical stores. In fact, Carrefour is so enthusiastic about the system it has put many of its private-label products into reusable packages. In the case of products ordered through e-commerce, the “loop” begins when a consumer places an order online. Their products are then delivered to their doorstep in the reusable Loop tote. When they are done with a product, the consumer places the empty package in one of the totes and alerts Loop to pick it up. (Both products ordered through Loop as well as through its partners’ sites are collected by Loop.) For staple products the consumer wants replenished immediately, the pickup triggers a new shipment. Consumers who purchase Loop products at a brick-and-mortar store can bring their empties directly back to the store. The beauty of the program at end of use is that consumers don’t have to clean or sort the empties. “It’s a completely disposable experience,” says Szaky. Sorting and cleaning is done by TerraCycle, which not only has the technology for straightforward cleaning jobs (e.g., cleaning rigid containers), but is also developing a range of technologies to handle more complex packaging components such as trigger sprayers and pumps. The company plans to have a warehousing and cleaning facility in every region in which Loop products are sold. With Loop, zero waste also means zero product waste. So when TerraCycle receives the containers for cleaning, it evaluates the leftover or used product to see if it can be recovered or recycled. Products are categorized as non-recoverable, as in the case of orange juice or window cleaner, or recoverable. “For recovery, there are two types of products,” Szaky explains. “The first is a product you can recover, but it would be unreasonable to reuse it, such as a razor blade or a toothbrush, which we then recycle. The other is a product, such as the casing of a pen, that it’s not unreasonable to reuse.” The final stage of the loop is the return of empty, clean packages to brand owners for refilling. The loop is closed when consumers receive new products. To ensure consumers return the empty packaging and the Loop totes, they pay a deposit for the items when they order the products. “This is key, since these are expensive packages,” says Szaky. “They are never owned by the consumer; the consumer borrows them. And, like anything you borrow, you put a deposit around it.” When the consumer returns the package, they receive 100% of the deposit back—no matter the shape in which they return it. TerraCycle’s view is that the durability of the package is not the consumer’s responsibility; it’s the responsibility of those who made it. Will Loop succeed? There are many reasons Loop should succeed—and in a big way. Among them, the furor over disposable, single-use packaging, the ease of e-commerce, the enhanced consumer experience allowed through higher-quality packaging, and Loop’s appeal to CPGs that are pushing to meet their own aggressive sustainable packaging goals. But will it take off? Szaky says signs are good. As more of the world’s largest CPGs join the platform, momentum is building, spurring others to join or be left behind. In just one week, he shares, SC Johnson with its Method and Ecover brands, global snacking company Pladis, and Reckitt Benckiser signed on. “And it wasn’t even a unique week,” he says. Another sign boding well for Loop is the response it has received from the 25 families in New York and the 25 in Paris that have already trialed the platform. Szaky says TerraCycle learned from these trials that once consumers start receiving their products in reusable packaging, they start getting “allergic” to disposability. “The question is, what is the tipping point?” he questions. “Do 20 percent of the products in your life have to be durable for you to say, ‘Forget disposability, I’m done.’” Compared with other strategies launched to reduce or eliminate packaging waste, such as “package-free” stores and self-dispensing systems, Loop celebrates packaging, enhancing its many functions, such as beauty, product protection, and convenience. “Packaging isn’t evil,” declares Szaky. “Neither is the idea of plastic or metal or paper. The evil, I think, is spending a lot of effort creating something awesome and then using it once and throwing it away.”

By now, everyone is aware that over-packaging is ruining the environment. But how to remedy the situation? Certainly FMCG companies don't want consumers to use fewer products, less often—that's a radical idea that would certainly work, but will certainly lead to lower sales and profits.  

Plastic is a hot topic in Davos this week and more big-name companies are stepping up commitments to reducing plastic waste -- playing catch-up to other industry leaders. Fast-food chicken chain KFC said Thursday that all plastic-based, consumer-facing packaging will be recoverable or reusable by 2025. Walmart Canada announced plans on Wednesday that include reducing plastic bag use by 2025 that will take about 1 billion bags out of circulation, and replacing single-use plastic straws with paper alternatives by 2020. “This commitment represents a public acknowledgment of the obligation we have to address these serious issues” of environmental sustainability, KFC Chief Executive Officer Tony Lowings said in a statement. Waste from plastic has become a flashpoint with environmentalists and consumers, and companies are reluctant to be seen as falling behind. Oreo maker Mondelez International Inc. and Nestle SA are among food giants that announced similar sustainability goals last year. KFC parent Yum! Brands Inc. previously said it will source all fiber-based packaging from certified or recycled sources by 2020, as a supporting partner of the NextGen Consortium. Starbucks Corp., McDonald’s Corp. and Coca-Cola Co. are also partners. Walmart Canada, with 411 stores and more than 85,000 employees, announced additional goals, including a 2025 target to have 100 percent recyclable, reusable or compostable packaging for its own private brand products as part of a global commitment launched by The Ellen MacArthur Foundation in 2018. Thus far, more than 290 companies have signed on for the 2025 date.

‘Aspirational Goal’

    “This is an aspirational goal when you think about it,” said Conrad MacKerron, senior vice president of As You Sow, a nonprofit group focused on shareholder advocacy. Still, publicly committing to such a target helps investors and consumers hold companies accountable, MacKerron said. There are also cities in the U.S. that have made zero-waste commitments, MacKerron said, citing San Francisco as an example. Nestle SA and PepsiCo Inc. are among some 25 consumer companies taking part in a program announced Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos that provides products in reusable packaging that can be returned for a refund. The “Loop” initiative, which refers to a theoretical circular economy where nothing is wasted, is led by New Jersey-based recycling company Terracycle Inc. KFC also said Thursday it made good on a promise that by the end of last year all chicken purchased would be raised without antibiotics important to human medicine. That initiative got underway in 2017 after pressure from shareholders. Other fast-food chains began phasing out chicken with antibiotics years earlier. Chick-fil-A Inc. began in 2014, Subway eliminated it in 2016 and Taco Bell, also owned by Yum! Brands, reached the goal in 2017. Still, KFC helped tip the chicken industry in an important way, according to Lena Brook, director of food campaigns at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “KFC proved that even in perhaps a more complex reality that change is possible if you commit to it,” Brook said.

Big companies are testing a return to the “milkman model”—that is, addressing waste by shifting to reusable containers. Twenty-five of the world’s biggest brands said they will make the change this summer, including Procter & Gamble Co., Nestlé SA, PepsiCo Inc. and Unilever PLC, the Wall Street Journal reported. These companies will use glass, steel, and other reusable containers that can be returned and cleaned to be used again. The participating companies see it as a way to reduce waste—and there’s a lot of it. According to data reported by the Earth Day Network, 9.1 billion tons of plastic has been produced since the 1950s when it was first introduced, and most of it still exists in some form. “From a philosophical point of view, we have got to lean in and learn about this stuff,” Simon Lowden, the marketing head for PepsiCo’s snacks business told the Journal. “People talk about recyclability and reuse and say they’d like to be involved in helping the environment, so let’s see if it’s true.” Business leaders in Davos this week for the World Economic Forum also discussed the issue of plastic waste. A new shopping platform, called Loop announced at the forum on Thursday that it would start delivering products like shampoo and laundry detergent for manufacturers in reusable containers, doing away with the disposable plastic containers, The Associated Press reported. Brands partnering with Loop include Nestle, Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo, and others. “Our goal is that by 2030, all of our packaging will be reusable or recyclable,” Virginie Helias, the vice president, and chief sustainability officer at Procter & Gamble, told the AP. Loop will start its offer with 300 products, with plans to expand down the line. Products include Pantene shampoo, which would be delivered in an aluminum pump container, and Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream, which would come in a stainless steel tub. “We have invented a process whereby we deconstruct PET plastic and polyester fiber into it base ingredients and then repolymerize them back into virgin-quality plastic. A great example would be to take an old used polyester carpet or sweater and turn that into a water bottle for one of our many clients such as Coca Cola or Pepsi-Cola,” Daniel Solomita, Loop founder and CEO, said in a statement to Fortune. While the company could help decrease garbage waste, it would also mean more delivery trucks, according to Tom Szaky, the CEO of the recycling company TerraCycle, which is behind Loop. In 2016, transportation, including cars, trucks, commercial aircraft, and railroads represented 28% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Light-duty vehicles accounted for 60% of the total transportation-related emissions, followed by medium- and heavy-duty trucks at 23%.

Dozens of major brands have partnered to launch this ambitious new packaging model in the U.S. and France. TerraCycle and Suez break down how it could change the waste equation in the coming decades. After years of quiet planning and rigorous testing, TerraCycle has unveiled what it believes will be a revolutionary change in packaging: Loop. Debuted at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this week, the new shopping system is the first of its kind to offer hundreds of name brand products in reusable and refillable packaging. In addition, many products traditionally viewed as inefficient to process — pens, diapers, razor blades — will now be recycled for the first time in many areas. This builds on the New Jersey company's foundational business of finding value in what is considered unrecyclable — but on an entirely new level. Designed to be more attractive and functional than common versions, these new goods will be available on a pilot basis in the U.S. and France, starting this spring. With the convenience of delivery and pick-up service via online ordering — and eventually at retail stores — Loop is being billed as a rare opportunity to wean consumers off single-use disposability. "The thesis of Loop is we want to bring about the future of consumption, and the tenet of that would be the idea that waste doesn't exist," said TerraCycle CEO Tom Szaky in an interview with Waste Dive.  

 

A new consumer culture?

Procter & Gamble and Nestlé (both founding investors) — along with PepsiCo, Unilever, Mars Petcare, The Clorox Company, The Body Shop, Coca-Cola European Partners, Mondelēz International and Danone — are among the initial partners that have designed new packaging for Loop. Achieving this level of participation from the companies behind so many household brands was seen as essential for consumer buy-in. According to Szaky, a key component is elevating the experience of reusable shopping (beyond its current niche version of bringing mason jars and cloth bags to a local bulk store) through added convenience and an element of "luxury." Prices are expected to be comparable to current options aside from a refundable deposit, and many containers are made from glass, stainless steel or durable plastic. Some, such as a new Häagen-Dazs container, will even keep products frozen or fresh for longer. As envisioned, this system will start out as a delivery/pick-up service — something Szaky has previously described as akin to the old "milkman" model. UPS will deliver the products in reusable shipping bags, and once consumers are done, transport the bags to a regional cleaning facility, where containers will be sanitized and products recycled. This is said to be the first time feminine care products and diapers will be recycled in France, and the first time for razor blades in the U.S. "There are some big firsts baked into Loop, and that's really using a lot of TerraCycle's original competency. If it's reasonable to recover and reasonable to reuse, then it must be reused, is the rule," said Szaky. The pilot program is expected to launch this spring in the Paris metro area and the New York City area – including parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. French retailer Carrefour has signed on as a partner, and a U.S. retailer is in the works. While the initial list of participating companies have had to make upfront investments in new packaging design (though on a limited scale to start), the ability to meet both consumer demands and sustainability targets is seen as worth the price of admission. A spokesperson for the French unit of Coca-Cola European Partner (CCEP) told Waste Dive it sees a way to expand existing refillable glass bottle sales and "bring this unique experience directly to consumers at home in line with a no waste vision and our sustainability strategy." Loop is considered a clear fit for CCEP's "This Is Forward" plan — part of Coca-Cola's broader "World Without Waste" initiative  to ensure all packaging is recyclable and fully recovered by 2025. Other major partners — including Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Unilever and Mondelēz International — have set their own future sustainability targets or made financial commitments to recycling initiatives in recent years. While these pledges have often been met with skepticism from major environmental groups, it's possible this Loop announcement may be perceived differently. Szaky noted that eight of the 10 companies on a 2018 Greenpeace list of the most commonly found brands in ocean clean-ups are Loop partners — a potential signal of their willingness to take more ownership over plastic pollution. Greenpeace itself is also participating in the Davos launch event.  

 

A world without "garbage"

Loop might be an easier fit for regulatory trends in European countries that encourage more recycling (though it will be exempt from extended producer responsibility rules), but it could prove a greater shock to the U.S. system if scaled successfully. The most directly affected parties will be packaging manufacturers — glass, for instance, might see more demand, while single-use plastic demand could decline. The potential decrease in tonnage for both waste and recycling collections also raises questions of what Loop will mean for the U.S. waste and recycling industry itself. "I'd say at the very beginning, if I was working over at Republic or Waste Management or even Waste Connections (Waste Connections owns a quarter of our Canadian company) I think they wouldn't even see this as a threat because it would seem super small compared to what is in the dumpster," said Szaky. "The real question is 10, 20, 30 years from now, if durable, reusable, repairable, that type of movement really hits scale — and I think Loop could be one of the vehicles that accomplish that — then you may see an effect on the loads, and unless you get involved in that, then you would see it competitively." Last year, Waste Connections CEO Ron Mittelstaedt told Waste Dive he believes "reuse is the pathway that will help diversion by non-generation" in future decades, although he didn't directly mention TerraCycle. No U.S. waste and recycling industry companies have invested in Loop to date. Suez, the France multinational that has a stake in TerraCycle's European operations, invested 4% in Loop. The company also partnered with Procter & Gamble and TerraCycle to launch a shampoo bottle made of ocean plastic at Davos in 2017. Jean-Marc Boursier, senior executive vice president of recycling and recovery at Suez's Northern Europe division, feels the concept fits into his company's view that increasing waste volumes can't be the primary corporate growth metric. According to Boursier, rising GDP, industrial activity and population growth should all be considered signs of a healthy economy — but that doesn't necessarily have to translate to more waste. "The question is, can we optimize waste production, and do we need to still dump everything into a very large landfill?" said Boursier, referring to the U.S. market. "Or, shall we consider waste as not only a nuisance, but as a product that we could transform into something more valuable?" Boursier declined to offer any direct advice on how U.S. service providers that still derive a significant portion of their revenue from landfills could adapt to such a model. Speaking about companies in general, he offered this outlook: "Either you enter — if you have an industrial company — into this world of circular economy with a negative view, where you believe that it is a constraint and it might have some increased costs at first glance. In which case you will be very reluctant to change the world — and we need to change our way if we are going to protect the planet," he said. "Or you take the lead and you try to differentiate yourself positively." Boursier sees Loop as a way for big brands to do that, adding that while it's too soon to know the full potential, "I believe it can change the world."  

 

Next steps

After the first two pilots launch this spring, Loop is expected to expand into the London area in late 2019 with retailer Tesco. Toronto, California and Tokyo — in conjunction with the 2020 Summer Olympics — are on tap for next year. According to Bloomberg, the company has invested an estimated $10 million in this concept. Asked how he sees this growing as part of TerraCycle's business, Szaky noted that the timeframe might be long, but the change will be apparent when the company's market share in a given area shifts away recycling disposable products to durable ones. Based on life-cycle assessments, consumers will need to reorder products upward of five times for the environmental effects to even out. Watching how many repeat participants Loop can attract, and at what scale, will be key to tracking its progress. In the meantime, Szaky is also still looking for acquisition opportunities in specialized waste streams — such as the 2018 purchase of light bulb recycler Air Cycle — and remains open to a scenario in which TerraCycle's core business of recycling challenging materials shrinks as Loop grows. When asked if the long-term plan was to still file for an IPO once the company approached $70 million in revenue, Szaky replied: "It absolutely is, and Loop just helps us get there faster."

Waste is a human invention and does not exist in nature. Prior to WWII, consumable products were delivered in reusable containers, goods were purchased in small markets or produced locally, and durable materials allowed for repair and reuse. Nothing went to waste. But with the rise of cheaply mass-produced plastics, increased levels of consumerism, and planned obsolescence in many products, our modern culture now creates waste on an unsustainable scale.

Ante las consecuencias innegables de la contaminación por plásticos, personas de todo el mundo están rechazando los artículos plásticos desechables y se están comprometiendo con estilos de vida sostenibles. Los gobiernos también están actuando: más de 50 países se han unido a la campaña Mares Limpios de ONU Medio Ambiente, el mayor movimiento mundial de lucha contra la basura marina. Las empresas no pueden permitirse ignorar esta protesta pública. Muchas industrias están elaborando planes para eliminar los plásticos de un solo uso, usar más plástico reciclado en sus empaques y trabajar en un reciclaje más efectivo. La presión no proviene solo de los consumidores. Bloomberg informó en junio que un grupo de 25 inversores que administra más de US$ 1 billón en activos exigió que Nestlé, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble y Unilever redujeran su uso de empaques plásticos. En la solicitud, respaldada por la organización sin fines de lucro As You Sow, se pidió a las empresas que divulgaran el uso anual de empaques de plástico, establecieran objetivos de reducción y facilitaran el reciclaje y la transición a empaques reciclables, reutilizables o compostables tanto como fuera posible. La necesidad de actuar urgentemente es innegable: los humanos han producido alrededor de 8.300 millones de toneladas de plástico desde la década de 1950 y se prevé que esa cifra aumente a alrededor de 34.000 millones de toneladas en 2050. Se estima que la producción de plástico crezca 40% en la próxima década, con compañías de combustibles fósiles invirtiendo miles de millones de dólares en nuevas industrias de fabricación de plástico en Estados Unidos. Las empresas que usan plásticos claramente tienen un papel fundamental que desempeñar para cambiar esta dinámica insostenible. La industria de bienes de consumo es particularmente consciente de que los clientes ya están rechazando los productos de las empresas que no evitan el uso de plástico desechable. La esperanza es que esta nueva realidad pueda generar innovación y oportunidades. Ya muchas firmas, grandes y pequeñas, están haciendo cambios. Aquí hay solo algunos ejemplos: En abril, el gigante suizo de alimentos Nestlé se comprometió a que sus empaques plásticos serían 100% reciclables o reusables para 2025. La empresa quiere fomentar el uso de plásticos que permitan mejores tasas de reciclaje y eliminen o cambien las combinaciones complejas que dificultan el reciclaje. Unilever también se ha comprometido a garantizar que todos sus envases de plástico sean totalmente reutilizables, reciclables o compostables para el año 2025. Unilever respalda la iniciativa para una Nueva Economía del Plástico de la Fundación Ellen MacArthur y pretende publicar antes de 2020 toda la gama de materiales plásticos utilizados en sus procesos de embalaje para ayudar a crear un protocolo para la industria. En el marco del Día Mundial del Medio Ambiente, Volvo anunció que al menos 25% de los plásticos utilizados en sus nuevos modelos de automóviles a partir de 2025 se fabricarán con materiales reciclados. El gigante de bebidas Coca-Cola, que usa alrededor de 120.000 millones de botellas al año, lanzó en enero su campaña World Without Waste y se comprometió a reciclar una botella o lata usada por cada nueva que se venda a partir de 2030. Para ese año, también prometió aumentar a 50% la cantidad de contenido reciclado en botellas de plástico y está experimentando con diferentes técnicas de recolección para reciclar sus productos, incluyendo el respaldo a los esfuerzos de los gobiernos y la industria. McDonald’s ha dicho que hará todos sus empaques a partir de fuentes renovables y reciclables para el año 2025. Dell apunta a que sus empaques no generen ningún tipo de desechos para el año 2020, utilizando materiales de fuentes sostenibles. La empresa de informática ya utiliza basura marina plástica reciclada y otros materiales como el bambú y aspira a que todos sus empaques sean finalmente aptos para el compostaje o la recolección doméstica. Evian de Danone fabricará todas sus botellas a partir de plástico reciclado para 2025. La tienda británica Iceland prometió eliminar los empaques de plástico de sus productos propios para fines de 2023. Procter & Gamble, que fabrica el champú Head & Shoulders, produjo el año pasado la primera botella de champú reciclable, fabricada con hasta 25% de plástico recuperado de playas. Además se ha comprometido a hacer que todos sus envases sean reciclables o reutilizables para el año 2030. Su marca de lavado, Fairy Liquid, ya ha producido una nueva botella de plástico, hecha con plástico 100% reciclado y 10% de basura marina plástica. Las botellas se desarrollaron en asociación con TerraCycle. La cadena de muebles sueca IKEA se ha comprometido a eliminar gradualmente los productos de plástico de un solo uso de sus tiendas y restaurantes para 2020. La firma dice que está comprometida con la eliminación de los plásticos a base de petróleo y quiere garantizar que todos sus productos de plástico estén hechos con materiales reciclados. En un informe reciente, ONU Medio Ambiente examina el potencial de reemplazar los plásticos convencionales con una gama de materiales naturales, como papel, algodón, madera, algas y hongos, y tecnologías alternativas, y biopolímeros de nueva generación fabricados a partir de fuentes de biomasa. También destaca a empresas, desde multinacionales hasta emprendimientos, que están innovando en este campo. Por ejemplo, una empresa con sede en Nueva York ha desarrollado envases compostables que utilizan desechos orgánicos y micelio fúngico. El material se puede modelar y se ha usado para enviar productos de alto valor, incluidas las computadoras Dell. El informe concluye que las empresas deben incluir la sostenibilidad en sus modelos comerciales, a veces inspirándose en las comunidades locales para encontrar alternativas al plástico disponibles a partir de plantas y animales. La innovación y el espíritu empresarial son fundamentales. Sin duda, este es precisamente el dominio en el que deben brillar las empresas líderes del mundo.

TerraCycle’s partnership with Procter & Gamble and SUEZ to put out a fully recyclable shampoo bottle made from beach plastic for Head & Shoulders creates a market for this material, viewing it as more sustainable, economically and environmentally, than producing additional plastics.