ZURICH, Dec. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Amcor, in
partnership with thirty-five leading companies in the consumer
goods industry, has today announced measures to significantly
reduce plastic waste. Amcor and its partners in this coalition –
which have a collective turnover of 1
trillion euros - will be enforcing two new design rules to
deliver packaging that is easier and more cost-effective to
recycle.
The first design rule is expected to improve the economic
viability of PET bottle recycling by removing colouring pigments
and labelling that impact recycling rates. The second design rule
will remove materials that are problematic for recyclers from all
forms of plastic packaging. By implementing these rules, recycling
will become easier, cheaper, more efficient and can scale faster -
which will result in less waste leaking into the environment.
As a global packaging company that supplies innovative packaging
for food, beverage, pharmaceutical, medical, home and personal care
products, Amcor has been instrumental in developing these rules.
The design principles also align with the company's own objectives
to develop more sustainable packaging and to collaborate to
increase recycling rates worldwide. This year, Amcor reported that
$7.71bn of its revenue is now
generated from products that are designed to be recyclable –
landmark progress towards its industry leading pledge that all of
its packaging will be recyclable or reusable by 2025.
Peter Konieczny, Amcor's Chief
Commercial Officer said: "Amcor is a world-leading, packaging
company. We are already applying these rules to make our packaging
easier to recycle, particularly in our PET bottles and rigid
packages. Our business has achieved consistent success in using our
innovation capabilities to eliminate materials that hamper
recycling and we continue to use more recycled content in our
packaging. We are keen to use our expertise alongside CGF and the
Plastic Waste Coalition of Action to help consumers make a positive
contribution to protecting the environment."
Steve Alexander, President and
CEO of the Association of Plastics Recyclers said: "APR is pleased
these design rules comply with the APR Design for Plastics
Recyclability for PET Recyclability. These guidelines help to
create industry standards to provide sustainability solutions for
plastic packaging, and will serve to enhance the value of PET
bottle recycling.
Recycling serves as the base for packaging to be part of the
circular economy, and these guidelines help to close the loop when
it comes to our waste management system."
Amcor is also endorsing the CGF's recent position paper on
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) which calls on governments
to work with industry to ensure that EPR schemes meet a set of
guiding principles for fairness, effectiveness and
sustainability.
David Clark, Amcor's Vice
President of Sustainability said: "Where governments are looking to
legislate in order to facilitate better waste management and
recycling infrastructure, Amcor is ready to work with them to
ensure that policy solutions are designed to achieve real impact
and to drive down waste. Amcor believes that Extended Producer
Responsibility is one tool that may have value in tackling waste
leakage and we are committed to sharing our expertise in order to
boost recycling rates and reduce waste leakage."
About Amcor
Amcor is a global leader in developing and producing responsible
packaging for food, beverage, pharmaceutical, medical, home and
personal-care, and other products. Amcor works with leading
companies around the world to protect their products and the people
who rely on them, differentiate brands, and improve supply chains
through a range of flexible and rigid packaging, specialty cartons,
closures, and services. The company is focused on making packaging
that uses less materials, is increasingly recyclable and reusable,
and is made with more recycled content. Around 47,000 Amcor people
generate $12.5 billion in annual
sales from operations that span about 230 locations in 40-plus
countries. (NYSE: AMCR) (ASX: AMC)
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SOURCE Amcor