packaging
Credit: Sarah/Flickr
EPA shuts down deceptive recycling claims in plastics industry
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has cracked down on the plastics industry’s use of misleading accounting methods to inflate recycled content claims, marking a significant federal move to curb greenwashing in product labeling.
In short:
- The EPA's new policy prohibits the plastics industry from using the mass balance method to falsely advertise recycled content in products.
- Products labeled with the “Safer Choice” endorsement must now contain at least 15% post-consumer recycled content, calculated by weight.
- This decision is part of a broader effort by the Biden administration to tackle plastic pollution and promote truthful labeling.
Key quote:
“This is the turning point” that will allow us to start killing the “hoax” of mass balance.
— Jan Dell, founder of The Last Beach Cleanup
Why this matters:
The EPA’s move means that any products endorsed under its "Safer Choice" label must now meet stricter, more transparent standards. This is a win for consumers who care about making genuinely sustainable choices and a signal that the government won't tolerate such corporate sleight of hand. Read more: Recycling plastics “extremely problematic” due to toxic chemical additives.
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Credit: Sören Funk/Unsplash
Industry giants show support for federal recycling fee initiative
Major petrochemical companies and manufacturers, including Exxon Mobil and LyondellBasell, are exploring with lawmakers the idea of implementing a federal fee on packaging to bolster recycling efforts.
In short:
- Key industry players are negotiating with Congress to introduce a fee on packaging materials aimed at enhancing recycling infrastructure.
- The initiative seeks to address the dismal 9% plastic recycling rate in the U.S. by adopting measures similar to those in Europe and certain U.S. states.
- Support for this proposal spans across large corporations, indicating a shift toward acknowledging the need for federally coordinated recycling strategies.
Key quote:
“Companies are starting to realize no amount of investment is going to solve this and they needed to start working closer with government. That’s a huge shift for American companies.”
— Erin Simon, a vice president at the World Wildlife Fund
Why this matters:
Recycling rates for plastics remain low compared to other materials, largely due to economic, technical, and logistical challenges. A recent report from Greenpeace and the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN) also finds that recycling plastics is problematic because they contain toxic chemical additives that can create new harmful substances during the recycling process.
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Dennis Amith/Flickr
Coffee capsules: Brewing up an (in)convenient storm of waste
As the global market for coffee capsules grows, so does the waste associated with it: The global footprint of annual coffee capsule waste is about 576,000 metric tons — the combined weight of about 4,400 school buses.
commons.wikimedia.org
Amazon’s plastic packaging could circle the planet 800 times. Can it be stopped?
Billions of packages are delivered every year by the world’s largest retailer and a wave of environmental pollution has followed.
Photo by Crystal Shaw on Unsplash
EU sets out plan to cut back packaging waste
New rules spell the end of throwaway coffee cups and condiment packets, prompting backlash from industry.
Hospitals confront their climate Achilles heel: supply chains
Cleaning chemicals, drugs and other goods that hospitals buy account for most of the greenhouse-gas emissions from US health care.
Top Story
The Field Report: Food companies are not counting all of their greenhouse gas emissions
A new report finds that companies that don’t disclose and really understand their emissions have a hard time addressing them with action plans.
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