How smart policy, strategic investment, and shared action can unlock more recycled PET.
By Kate Davenport
For years, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling has focused primarily on bottles. But non-bottle PET, or thermoforms, which include items like clamshells, tubs and cups, have been shifting into focus in recent years. While made from the same material as beverage bottles, thermoforms often fall through system gaps due to limited demand, which leads to limited investment in processing. However, with new policies taking effect, the question is no longer whether thermoforms can be recovered at scale, but how quickly the system can adapt to make it happen.
The Policy Shift That is Raising the Bar
With the passage of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws in seven states, California stands out as it is not only the largest U.S. state economy, but they have also established rapid timelines and stringent requirements for packaging producers in order to avoid bans and/or fines. California will require a 30 percent recycling rate for single-use packaging by 2028 and ultimately a 65 percent rate by 2032, just four years later. Currently, thermoforms have a recycling rate of only 14 percent in California.
As EPR rolls out, thermoform supply will increase as households are encouraged to recycle more, but, ultimately, the material will have nowhere to end up without demand pull for thermoform-derived PET. Increasing demand for this post-consumer recycled (PCR) content is critical to sustaining and growing the recycling value chain.
Opportunities and Challenges
There is real opportunity to improve processing capabilities for PET thermoforms. But without market stability, processors cannot secure the investment needed to upgrade facilities. We are at a critical point. Demand for North American rPET from end users has softened. As pressure around ESG commitments eases, too many companies are reverting to cheaper virgin plastic, and local reclaimers cannot compete with imported recycled content on price alone.
U.S. rPET Imports are Growing鈥擳hat Should Be a Wake-Up Call
According to the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) data, in just two years rPET imports to the U.S. rose by more than 65 percent, from 150,000 metric tons in 2022 to more than 250,000 metric tons in 2024. Imports from Asia now represent 44 percent of this volume, up from 20 percent in 2020. Initial analysis of import data for 2025 shows a doubling of imported rPET compared to 2024.
Meanwhile, recyclers are expanding capacity to process PET thermoforms but are not seeing the brand commitments needed to stay viable. If companies want a resilient, circular supply chain, they need to buy recycled content from North American sources now. Otherwise, we risk losing the very infrastructure required to meet future demand.
Driving PCR Demand
The lack of actualized demand is leading to a crisis in both the U.S. and Europe. Reclaimers are scaling back or shutting down; rPlanet Earth鈥檚 recent closure means the loss of nearly 70 million pounds of PET reprocessing capacity every year. This is a signal, not an outlier. Without demand certainty, the business case for PCR falls apart.
The Recycling Partnership is stepping in and actively supporting voluntary demand solutions today. As a strategic partner to the APR鈥檚 Demand Champion Program, we are aligning with leaders who are making real commitments to buy North American-derived PCR and products that contain it. At the same time, we are examining how Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and other public policy can be structured to create stable demand, incentivize long-term contracts, and drive the investment needed to process more thermoforms.
The Processing Evolution Needed
Increased demand alone is not enough. The system must also evolve to meet the growing supply of thermoforms. Today, approximately only 1 in 3 PET reclaimers can effectively reprocess thermoforms with minimal loss of material.
PET bales have shifted from bottle-dominant to heavier on thermoforms over the last 10 years. We have analyzed PET bales and interviewed reclaimers across the country in non-bottle bill states. The message is clear:
- Most thermoforms are clear and ready to be recovered.
- Labels, adhesives, and certain design elements can still cause yield loss, impacting how much a PET reclaimer is willing to accept.
- Volatile pricing and weak demand for North American rPET are stalling upgrades and suppressing capacity.
The result? A system stuck in a standoff. End users cite a range of issues to avoid long-term contracts. Yet the supply chain needs those contracts to justify necessary investments to address those concerns. Without those commitments, everyone loses.
Investment in Action
The PET Recycling Coalition launched in 2022 to tackle one of North America鈥檚 most pressing system challenges: investing holistically across the PET recycling value chain. And the impact is already visible.
For example, Ice River Sustainable Solutions (IRSS) receives PET bales with up to 15 percent thermoforms from MRFs across North America, creating new products with harder-to-recycle formats and transforming other streams into bottles and furniture. With support from the Coalition, IRSS has proactively optimized operations to manage this mixed material stream.
In Baldwin County, AL, a new MRF installed an optical sorter with grant funding from the Coalition. The upgrade enables the facility to capture and sort an expected 1.3 million additional pounds of PET each year, reducing contamination risk and increasing material value. And in California, Valemi Inc鈥檚 Pico Rivera facility added capacity to recover PET from thermoform-dominant bales, speeding up sortation and boosting recovery.
Education in Action
Facility upgrades and optimization matters, but they are not enough. Even with optimized infrastructure and strong end markets, education remains essential. The Coalition鈥檚 core strategy builds on The Partnership鈥檚 proven best management practices from the last decade to drive resident participation. We help communities bridge the gap between what鈥檚 accepted and what is understood. We ensure MRF acceptance guidance reaches programs, and programs are equipped to engage residents with clear, consistent information.
In Mecklenburg County, NC, one of the largest counties in the state, a Coalition grant helped their MRF capture nearly 5 million more pounds of PET bottles annually and launch curbside thermoform recycling. However, equipment upgrades alone do not move the needle. That is why the Coalition also supported an education campaign, where residents were clearly told: your berry containers and deli packaging now belong in the cart. System optimization depends on people, not just processing. Education keeps materials moving and value growing.
Shared Action for Shared Success
EPR will help drive demand, but not fast enough. We need action now to invest in the system that we need for the future. We are calling all stakeholders to the table to help create innovative, market- and policy-based solutions to scale a circular economy for PET. The economics are challenging. The barriers are real. So is the opportunity. Voluntary demand matters, but investment in communities and processors are an important part of the equation. If we want a system that works for all of us, we have to build it together. | WA
Kate Davenport is the Chief Impact Officer for The Recycling Partnership, a purpose-driven organization committed to building a better recycling system. Kate鈥檚 work focuses on implementing this catalyzing policy to realize desired impacts. She has an extensive background in environmental sustainability, having previously co-led Eureka Recycling, a nonprofit recycler and zero waste advocacy organization in the Twin Cities. She has worked across stakeholder groups to bring on-the-ground experience in recycling to highlight the challenges and opportunities in recycling to advocate for private and public action that can exponentially expand the environmental, social, and economic benefits of recycling and zero-waste strategies. A founding member of the Alliance for Mission Based Recyclers, Kate鈥檚 experience spans roles at EcoVentures International, aiding microenterprise development and plastics recycling in South Asia, East Africa, the Caribbean, and the U.S.; Envirelation, one of the first organic collection companies in the U.S.; and SustainUS, contributing to UN Environment Program negotiations on sustainability and climate issues.
The Recycling Partnership is ready to support processing upgrades, resident engagement, and industry alignment to drive long-term demand and build a sustainable future for PET thermoforms. E-mail Kate at [email protected] to work together with The Recycling Partnership on national policy priorities to shape recycling and the circular economy.