Companies Move Forward with Credits to Reduce Plastic Waste

Danone and Tetra Pak, along with other companies and nonprofit organizations, are implementing what they call the “3R” initiative that would allow companies to quantify the effectiveness of their waste recovery and recycling investments. The initiative would allow companies to buy plastic credits issued by recyclers and use them to offset their plastic use, according to a Barron’s report.

The report notes that the 3R Corporate Standard would help companies “verify and validate the outcomes of their waste reduction efforts, efforts which had not been previously recognized by a streamlined standard.”

Barron's has more information:

You’ve probably heard of carbon credits, but soon you may be hearing about recycling credit, a new mechanism meant to give companies market incentive to pay attention to their plastic flow.

The world’s biggest yogurt maker, Danone, and food-packaging company Tetra Pak are backing a new recycling credit system, to be co-managed by Verra, the world’s largest greenhouse-gas program, and by the Rio de Janeiro-based nonprofit BVRio. Also backed by the Swiss food giant Nestlé, the system is designed to help companies leverage market-based solutions to reduce, recover, and recycle their plastic waste.

The ‘3R’ Initiative, aimed to be implemented next year, would allow companies to quantify the effectiveness of their waste recovery and recycling investments. They could buy plastic credits issued by recycling and recovery providers and use them to offset their plastic use.

Read the full article here.