Expanded polystyrene (EPS) resin producers in North America have made significant investments, totaling more than $185 million, in technologies for recycled content EPS feedstock, according to EPS Industry Alliance (EPS-IA), a North American trade association leading the EPS industry. This collective effort is driving sustainability across various industries. Leading resin producers, including RAPAC, Epsilyte, Styropek, Nexkemia, and BASF, have developed proprietary formulas enabling EPS fabricators to incorporate over 30% recycled content in their products. Currently, 79 million pounds of online capacity are serving North American markets, and an additional 150 million pounds of capacity is projected for the future, the EPS-IA stated. Three of these recycled content products have received third-party certifications, and there is an exploration of traceability technology for future formula iterations.
“This new product offering has the potential to be a game-changer for the EPS industry”, said Betsy Bowers, executive director of the EPS-IA. “Recycled content resin will further reduce EPS’ environmental impacts with even lower energy use, and a smaller carbon footprint. Despite long-standing misconceptions, EPS recycling has a strong track record that will now see even more growth.”
In March 2022 at the UN Environment Assembly, a resolution was adopted to develop an international legally binding treaty on plastic pollution. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP)’s Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), which is developing the treaty, will hold its third session (INC-3) from November 13-19, 2023 at the UNEP Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.
