Recycled plastic Solution (Ideas) for business

Can You Make Money from Recycling Plastic?

One of the obstacles standing in the way of the scaling of plastic recycling is a lack of people identifying the value in plastic waste. There are actions individuals and businesses can take to collect plastic waste and deposit it at recycling centers. These centers can pay you bringing in the material, especially if collection systems are not currently in place where you live. In addition to the collection and processing of plastic waste like PET bottles, there is also profit in the re-manufacturing of recyclable materials. With only 14% of plastic packaging being recycled and only 2% being reused as packaging, there is a largely untapped market in reprocessing plastic for its second life. While the sales and reuse of recyclable materials can help reduce waste, more emphasis also needs to place on redesigning products to reduce plastic waste and make them as recyclable as possible. As the Ellen MacArthur Foundation has stated on cleanaway plastic recycling, “We cannot recycle our way out of plastic pollution, and neither can we simply reduce our way out of it. Breaking the Plastic Wave shows that we must take a comprehensive circular economy approach. We must prioritise rethinking what is put on the market, whilst also rapidly increasing our ability to keep it in the loop after it has been used.” So, lets recycle to take action in a way that can deliver results that will make a positive difference!

Advantages Of Recyclable Materials

Recycling waste has many advantages for the environment and businesses. It conserves natural resources by reducing the demand on finite resources to produce new products, it cuts down the amount of waste in landfill sites and can help save money by cutting collection and disposal costs. The production of virgin plastics results in staggering greenhouse gas emissions, recycled plastic products can help reduce that to a minimum and reduce waste as well. Landfills are also largely made up of waste that could instead be repurposed rather than letting it sit in landfill sites for centuries contaminating soil and seeping into ground water as well as ending up in waterways. Additionally, recyclable materials promote environmental awareness and incentivize sustainable design, manufacturing, and the responsible disposal of products.

The Benefits of Buying Recyclable Materials for Business Owners

Business owners have the opportunity to reduce the cost of raw materials they require, maximize their profitability, reducing their carbon footprint, and attracting sustainably minded consumers and talent. Consumers, manufacturers, and potential employees are more likely to be interested in your business knowing there is a recycling plan, green vision, and efforts are being taken to not use non-recyclable materials. Customers are more likely to accept a product that is made of PA for example, if they know the company has put thought into making it recyclable at the end of its life. The extent to which a company places importance on implementing sustainability targets and strategies is important. People are more likely to opt for companies that use recycled ocean plastic than ones that simply support something like acrylic recycling. Businesses are being held accountable, and this is likely to increase in the future with policies like the Plastic Packaging Tax coming to the UK in April 2022, which will place a tax charge of  £200 per tonne of plastic packaging that contains less than 30% recycled content. Additionally, having a recycling plan in place can make your business eligible for certain grants and other opportunities that would aid business development as well as prepare you for future legislation mandating business recycling to achieve tax reductions.

How to Use Recycled Plastics in Your Business

The materials you can recycle depends largely on the type of industry you work in. In some cases it may require a simple recycling program for office supplies and waste. In other cases the waste may come from the manufacturing of packaging, textile fibre and clothing, traffic management products, bin liners and refuse sacks, or automotive products. Whatever the waste product or industry is, there is likely to be other companies that find value in these end products or have the infrastructure to extract that value from them. For example, there is a lot of demand for construction products and stationery and industrial strapping for re-manufacturing into landscaping products and tools, street equipment, and traffic management products. In fact, many benches, roads, and building materials are being increasingly made from recycled materials. There are many cases that show the innovation that is taking place to find applications that provide this plastic waste with a second life, whether to build homes, manufacture clothing and sneakers, or insulate homes.

Who Needs Recycled Plastics

Waste management and recycling services are a key tool in the scaling of plastics recycling and they are expanding as the industry has already grown by 65% in only the past 4 years. However, they still require further investment and infrastructure to properly meet the demand and the variety in types of plastics recycling that exists and is currently needed. Construction companies are some of the businesses with the most opportunities pertaining to recycled materials as both suppliers and buyers. Many of the products used in this industry can be reused/remanufactured and recycled materials have a variety of applications in construction such as building material and insulation. While products like PET and HDPE bottles are widely accepted and collected, recycle waste services need to expand and obtain the ability to process other types of plastic that are commonly used but often not recycled due to requiring specific machinery or processes. While it would be best for businesses to simply not use these less commonly recycled polymers, we can’t ignore all the products that are already in circulation. At the same time, it is important for brands to use their store network to lead in making more sustainable choices and motivate others to follow the same “go green plastic recycling” steps.  MikaCycle can meet the needs of a variety of businesses and help them find the materials they can sell or purchase as well as support their transition towards a more sustainable incorporation of recycled materials and circular business development.