Author: jamierosen

Recycling for World Environment Day By Jennifer Perr, Hi-Cone Director of Sustainability

For most people, recycling is now a regular activity – something they do when they dispose of used packaging or get rid of something they no longer need. Education on the importance of recycling has created a momentum which can now be capitalized upon with further guidance on what can be recycled, and how. By working together, manufacturers, policy makers, enterprise and individuals can promote an even more sustainable future, and a circular economy in which the entire lifecycle of products is considered.

According to recent findings, nine out of ten (91%) of adults surveyed believe recycling plastic is beneficial to the environment, while 75% regularly recycle at home. This is incredibly encouraging – a strong foundation to build on – and a clear demonstration that society is moving away from a single-use outlook in which products are created, used and disposed of, in favor of sustainability.

An appetite for recycling

This appetite for recycling creates the right conditions for industry to work with communities and consumers to meet the goal of minimizing the impact of plastics on our environment, while maximizing plastic recycling.

While there is work still to be done, over a third (34%) of participants in our survey thought that they recycle all the plastic waste they possibly could. That, of course, still leaves considerable room for improvement but a clue as to why this figure isn’t higher is found from 80% of those who don’t recycle all plastic, who said they would do so more frequently if they had more facilities and/or guidance.

Clear and simple guidance is essential for consumers to be able to have confidence in recycling processes and to recycle to the extent they want to. Through education, consumers can more fully understand which plastics can be recycled and where, something which will not only help increase recycling rates but also ensure the right type of waste enters recycling processes to reduce inefficiency and maximize output. Education around the suitability of different materials for recycling will also equip consumers to make informed decisions on the products they buy, consume and dispose of.

Sustainable product lifecycles

Manufacturers in turn must continue to ensure they prioritize sustainability and environmental measures. They can seek to do this in a number of ways, including through an increase in the percentage of recycled materials in their products and by introducing programs for materials excluded from community recycling initiatives.

Manufacturers should also commit to regularly assessing the lifecycle of their materials – from ‘cradle-to-grave’. There is an environmental consideration for all materials, not just in how they are disposed of but also in how they are manufactured, with carbon emissions and energy consumption all contributing to total impact. Lifecycle assessments should therefore inform decisions around not only the sustainability of materials used in the manufacturing process, but also the use of resources (water, fuels etc.) and production of emissions.

Continuing efforts by governments and local authorities can improve recycling infrastructure to support community recycling. This is aided by initiatives from waste management companies like TerraCycle® to collect waste not currently recycled and turn it into a valuable resource.

As part of a collective effort to end plastic waste and promote sustainability in manufacturing, production and consumption, recycling initiatives have a good foundation to build on. To accelerate towards the next stage of progress, education and infrastructure must support good intentions around recycling and in this, consumers, policy makers and manufacturers all have a role to play.

To find out how to recycle Hi-Cone’s plastic ring carriers, visit www.ringrecycleme.com, an international recycling program.

 

About the Author

Jennifer Perr is the Global Sustainability Director at Hi-Cone. In this role, she collaborates with the entire value chain to both build and educate key stakeholders about the circular economy. She also leads Hi-Cone’s Vision 2025 team, focused on developing new multi-packaging solutions that continue Hi-Cone’s long history of packaging with positive end-of-life outcomes and that uphold Hi-Cone’s commitment to minimal environmental impact.

 

 

 

Recycling photos proudly provided by Hi-Cone employees

World Environment Day photo Credit

Hi-Cone is honored to have won the ‘Most Responsible Packaging Solutions – United States 2020’ award from CFI.co whose award program aims to identify individuals and organizations that truly add value. As we continue to push forward on our sustainability journey and work to provide valuable research and sustainable packaging solutions to our customers and consumers, we are humbled and grateful to receive such recognition.

We shared with The Capital Finance International Judging Panel, who have a combined 170 years of experience, the changes we have made over the past year to our brand, our product, and also to the way we operate. These changes were made to reduce our environmental footprint as a company as well as make a meaningful contribution to the global sustainability movement. The judging panel recognized what drives our motivation in sustainability, stating: “Hi-Cone reminds us that plastic has contributed massively to our modern lives and is not waste, but a valuable resource that needs to be reused or recycled at the end of its first life.” With this motivation of helping create a place for plastic in the new circular economy, we have succeeded in bringing our +50% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content ring carrier, RingCycles™, to market and have published our first annual report on The State of Plastic Recycling (staging.hicone.flywheelsites.com/sustainability).

 

In addition to these projects, we have also committed ourselves to supporting more community-based and global initiatives by partnering with environmental leaders such as TerraCycle® and Avangard Innovative in our different regions of operation. Together with them, we have helped provide better ways for consumers to recycle their ring carriers as well as for more recycled material to be used in the production of new ring carriers. The judging panel further applauded the 30th anniversary of our Ring Leader Collection Program which has resulted in the recycling of well over 2.7 million pounds of ring carriers, in addition to those recycled through the latest partnerships.

 

These milestones are only some of many on our sustainability journey. The judging panel recognized our ambitious mission ahead: “Hi-Cone is determined to become 100% recyclable, biodegradable or compostable by 2025, and will work with consumers, government, and industry to reduce the use of plastic.” Moving into the rest of 2020 and beyond, we will be continuing efforts to offer consumers helpful insights into better recycling practices as well as continuing to provide valuable data to our partners and customers on plastic recycling and the environmental impact of different packaging materials. Our new RingCycles™ product, launched in the Fall of 2019, will also continue to roll out across all markets and be completed by early 2021. Using this award as fuel, we will be finding more ways to participate in the global shift towards sustainability and develop products that support the future circular economy.

 

On March 29, 1990, Hi-Cone created and launched the Ring Leader Recycling Program, a large scale environmental education and ring carrier recycling campaign to reduce litter.

The program was launched as an educational experience, dispelling myths about six-pack rings and emphasizing the importance of the 3-R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Additionally, the program provided a way for ring carriers to be recycled in places where #4 LDPE plastics were not collected in local programs or curbside.

In the 30 years since its launch, more than 16,000 schools, businesses and groups from around the world have participated in the Ring Leader Program, recycling over 2.7 million pounds of ring carriers.

 

Partnering With Industry

In the US, the Ring Leader Recycling Program has engaged notable partners such as Disney and Southwest Airlines. In the fall of 2017, the Ring Leader program was highlighted in Southwest, The Magazine, the airline’s inflight magazine. Southwest’s provisioning stations have collected and sent back rings for more than 10 years. However, the majority of takeback has been at a grass-roots level with school programs and recycling advocates that have taken it upon themselves to set up local collection areas. To help these collection efforts, the Ring Leader Program provided collection ‘trees’ made from recycled content themselves. These can be seen in breakrooms, cafeterias and craft beer tap rooms in the United States.

Internationally, the Ring Leader project was carried out in Spain on a pilot basis in 1992. Ten primary schools in the Barcelona area participated in the project during that school period year. Presently, more than 120 schools Spain are participating. Other advocates from around the world have set up local collection sites to get rings back to Hi-Cone facilities and our recycling partners. Returned ring carriers are made into new packaging, helping to make them into something useful and keep them out of landfills.

Expanding With The RingRecycleMe^TM Program

Even before the Ring Leader Recycling Program reached this 30-year milestone, Hi-Cone had been looking for a way to further expand ring collection and recycling efforts. In conjunction with their new RingCycles™ PCR portfolio, carrier products made with 50% post-consumer recycled plastic, Hi-Cone began to roll out its wider recycling program.

The RingRecycleMe™ program will be targeted at end consumers and individuals, expanding the scope of the previous program.  The RingRecycleMe™ program is more focused on promoting a circular economy as ring carriers will be made back into post-consumer recycled material ring carriers and other products.

Hi-Cone has partnered with different groups around the world to build on their goal of eliminating waste and promoting recycling.

In the UK for example, (www.ringrecycleme.co.uk) Hi-Cone partnered with TerraCycle at the end of 2019 and has already seen almost 500 collection sites, including both individuals and organizations, sign up and start collecting.

 

In Spain, infrastructure is in place to collect the ring carriers in the municipally provided yellow bins, so Hi-Cone’s efforts there have been around messaging this to consumers through on-pack labels.

Most recently, Hi-Cone has set up RingRecycleMe.com for use in Canada and will soon be rolling out in the United States. Similar programs are in the works for Mexico. Hi-Cone asks that interested parties in these regions continue to collect rings and be ready for the upcoming announcements on where to send them for recycling and reuse.

As the RingRecycleMe™ programs launch globally, Hi-Cone will continue to support the current Ring Leader participants. Hi-Cone’s goals continue to be providing education on minimal packaging, reuse of plastic products in a circular economy, and promotion of more expansive recycling programs to include all plastic types.

Hi-Cone’s first annual report on The State of Plastic Recycling reveals consumer attitudes towards recycling and the circular economy.

Itasca, Illinois – February 26, 2020. To shed light on the current state of recycling and to help advance the circular economy, Hi-Cone, a leading manufacturer of beverage multi-packaging solutions, presents their first annual report on The State of Plastic Recycling. Findings of the report show that only one-third of adults across four territories reported recycling all of their plastic waste, with over half reporting they found recycling different plastics difficult to understand. Those surveyed also expressed low confidence in the recycling systems in their countries, with over two-thirds reporting to believe only 50% or less of what they put into their recycling bins is actually recycled.

Despite these low levels of plastic recycling, and uncertainty in how to recycle such materials, 75% of adults reported that they regularly recycle in their homes, and 80% of those who do not recycling all of their plastic reported that if they had more facilities and/or guidance, they would recycle more frequently. The findings of the report, conducted by YouGov, not only expose global consumers’ lack of confidence in plastic recycling, but also their eagerness to recycle in general and desire for better guidance on how to do so. Hi-Cone’s Vice President and General Manager, Shawn Welch, acknowledges the challenges the packaging industry faces as sustainability has become a major focus in recent years: “There is a great need to create a more transparent process and clear guidance for consumers when it comes to the development of a circular economy and better recycling practices. Only by understanding consumer beliefs, national programs and global goals, can the industry make real progress in sustainability.”

The State of Plastic Recycling Report surveyed over 5,500 adults across four markets – Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States — on their behaviours, knowledge and attitudes towards plastic packaging recycling. The report makes clear the uncertainty of consumers as to which materials are better for the environment, with over one-third of adults across all territories reporting to be unsure if it takes more energy and natural resources to recycle plastic than paper. In addition to lack of certainty, consumers also expressed a great lack of confidence in the recycling system, with one-third of those surveyed believing only a quarter of what they put in their recycling bins is actually recycled.

Hi-Cone’s Sustainability Director Jennifer Perr comments on how this report, and others like it, are important for the packaging industry as it works towards a circular economy: “The waste crisis is an issue of both packaging design and a lack of recycling culture and infrastructure. With the help of this report, we can take a look at where the industry can better support consumers with education and resources and start to collaborate with local governments and private recycling partners to improve the recycling system. By working together with consumers and recycling organizations, the industry will be better able to make progress towards creating a circular economy.”

The findings of the report aim to provide clarity for the packaging industry, and for consumers, on what challenges and opportunities lie ahead on the road to a more sustainable future. “Open communication between the industry and the public will help prevent further environmental risk down the road by stopping the current trend of solving one problem and replacing it with an even bigger one. Better communication will help us find a real solution.” Welch continues, referring to a recent Green Alliance report that warns of the potential environmental risks of banning plastic packaging in favour of other materials that have larger carbon footprints and therefore can be seen as detrimental to the environment.

The report uncovers common consumer misconceptions around packaging and recycling, identifying several starting points for the industry to come together. Hi-Cone has been making strides in its own sustainability journey. This includes the formation of several cross-industry partnerships, such as a recycling partnership with TerraCycle® in the UK, and the launch of their +50% post-consumer recycled content product, RingCycles™, which reduces the company’s use of virgin plastic by half. By releasing the report each year, Hi-Cone aims to provide a consistent and up to date resource of information to support the sustainability efforts of Hi-Cone, the packaging industry and beyond.

The State of Plastic Recycling Report is available in full HERE and is free to access.

About Hi-Cone

Hi-Cone is a leading supplier of ring carrier multi-packaging systems for the global Beer & Non-Alcoholic Ready to Drink (NARTD) beverage markets, providing sustainable packaging solutions to major Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) companies. Hi-Cone has set ambitious goals to become 100% recyclable, biodegradable or compostable by 2025. We realize we cannot do this alone and need to work collaboratively with consumers, governments and industry to meet consumers desire to reduce their plastic use and meet the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

Our aim is to educate consumers on how to reduce plastic consumption and how to recycle all aspects of the circular economy; an economic system aimed at eliminating waste and the continual use of resources. We partner with consumers, retailers and industry experts to make tangible and impactful changes to advance the circular economy through our ongoing innovations in packaging design and material development.

Further Information

Elizabeth Sheaffer
+1 815 275 5266
esheaffer@staging.hicone.flywheelsites.com

Safety First: Think Safe. Work Safe. It’s How We Work.

At Hi-Cone, safety is our number one priority. That’s why we recently celebrated one year without a lost time accident with our Itasca, IL team members. #ProudToBeHiCone #Safety

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi-Cone employees from our Tlalnepantla plant near Mexico City recently led their families, friends, and volunteers from Grupo Modelo at the Limpieza de Bosque de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Forest Clean-up) in Mexico City.

In Hi-Cone Mexico’s first clean-up event, we were proud to partner with our customer Modelo as part of their larger campaign, #voluntariosmodelo. By organizing a clean-up in this public park, we helped to bring awareness to waste education and recycling, subjects that both companies care about.

 

 

 

Hi-Cone employees once again welcomed students from Addison Trail High School to learn about a global business and learn more about different careers. Hi-Cone shares Junior Achievements’ vision to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy. Opportunities like this bring the real world to students, opening their minds to their potential and helps students understand the relationship between what they learn in school and their successful participation in our economy in the future.

 

Over 107 Hi-Cone employees, friends and family again joined forces with the Ocean Conservancy, Ambiente Europeo and International Costal Cleanup España to make a difference in the communities in which we live and work. This year’s event was at Arenys de Mar, Barcelona, Spain. Hi-Cone is proud to be part of the Ocean Conservancy’s data collection, which provides the only empirical database about animal entanglement. Once again, our efforts show that ring carriers are not a significant cause of litter or animal entrapment issues. Of the 3,852 items collected, zero ring carriers were found.

 

Hi-Cone ring carriers can easily be recycled via yellow recycling bins in Spain. Hi-Cone is working hard to create a world where plastics need never become waste and to keep our oceans and beaches trash free. #CollectivelyWeCan

Hi-Cone is proud to have joined the growing list of companies leading the way towards a circular economy for plastics by signing the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment in February 2019. We are holding ourselves accountable to our goals and helping create a world where plastic need never become waste.

We’ve launched RingCycles™, a multi-packaging solution that contains +50% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content. This is a critical step in Hi-Cone’s environmental responsibility commitment as well as its goal to deliver a 100% recyclable, biodegradable or compostable alternative by 2025.

Read the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment progress report 2019 to learn more about what we, and others around the world, are doing to create a circular economy for plastics. www.newplasticseconomy.org.