PLASTICS celebrates Recycling Week  

This November, PLASTICS proudly celebrated Recycling Week and America Recycles Day — a national observance dedicated to raising awareness about recycling and inspiring action across the United States. For the entire plastics industry, this week is a meaningful opportunity to highlight how plastic recycling works, share ways to make it more effective, and celebrate the individuals and organizations driving innovation and sustainability in plastics.  

PLASTICS President and CEO Matt Seaholm put it best:  

“For the plastics industry, every day is America Recycles Day. Our industry is dedicated to advancing recycling, which is why we continually work to improve recyclability and invest billions in innovative technologies to make a real difference. Recycling is real, and the plastics industry is proud to be part of the solution.”  

Each year, this time is used to highlight collaborative efforts within our industry to ensure plastic is kept out of our environment and remains in our circular economy. This year was no different — it was a week filled with recognition, innovation and inspiration.  

Honoring a champion for recycling  

A highlight of Recycling Week was the presentation of the 2024 Congressional Recycling Champion Award to Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), retiring co-chair of the Congressional Recycling Caucus.  

This award, presented on Capitol Hill, recognized Sen. Carper’s dedication to sustainability and his leadership in advancing pro-recycling policies. His work has left a lasting impact, creating opportunities for progress in recycling across the nation. PLASTICS, joined by 15 other industry associations, hosted the event which was attended by over 80 professional congressional staff and key stakeholders.  

While accepting the award, Sen. Carper shared his commitment to recycling, noting:  

“I believe we have a responsibility to leave our planet in better shape than we found it. By promoting recycling in America, we can serve as faithful stewards of our planet and fight climate change, while also investing in American manufacturing and jobs.”  

PLASTICS remains committed to working with lawmakers, the new administration, and local governments to expand recycling efforts and recover valuable materials for reuse every day.  

Celebrating industry impact  

Whether through innovation, education or partnerships, the plastics industry plays a crucial role in improving our nation’s recycling rate. During Recycling Week, PLASTICS promoted some incredible initiatives making a real difference:  

• Cyclyx showcased their 10to90 initiative, proving that even contaminated plastics can be effectively recycled with the right systems in place.  

• Ultra-Poly highlighted how plastics are often the more environmentally friendly choice over alternative materials, thanks to durability and energy efficiency.  

• Perfect Packaging created a fun, easy-to-understand video and fact sheet about recycling flexible plastic films, helping consumers feel confident about returning these materials to store drop-off locations.  

• Hillenbrand shared their partnership with Net Impact through the Circular Plastics Challenge, where industry and academia collaborate to keep plastics in the economy and out of the environment.  

These are just a few of the many inspirational efforts underway. To further celebrate these advancements, PLASTICS has opened nominations for the Plastics Sustainability Innovation Awards. This program recognizes groundbreaking work in sustainable design, materials innovation and responsible end-of-life solutions. Nominations are open until Jan. 17 — we can’t wait to celebrate the innovative ideas driving change.  

Recycling is Real  

PLASTICS released a new video in our ongoing advocacy campaign, Recycling is Real, as well.   This latest installment in the video series showcased the innovations in advanced recycling happening at Eastman in Kingsport, Tenn.  

Through this campaign, we’re proud to focus on the people and companies working tirelessly to recycle valuable materials and advance a more circular economy. This marks the 14th video in the series which has featured recycling efforts from California to Florida, and everywhere in between.   

A call to action  

Leading up to America Recycles Day on Nov. 15, in an opinion piece, PLASTICS President and CEO Matt Seaholm said:  

“As an industry, we are working alongside our partners to make plastics more recyclable and to educate people on the importance of daily recycling… The recycling and plastics industries have made real progress to show the possibilities behind advancing recycling, but there's more we can — and must — do.” 

Recycling Week may only last seven days, but our entire industry’s commitment to promoting recycling is ongoing. Together, we can combat false narratives, increase recycling rates, and showcase how plastics — an essential material in our modern lives — will continue to be part of a sustainable future.