Unlocking Circularity for PET Packaging in the USA: 2040 system modeling and recommendations

About This Webinar

PET packaging and polyester textiles are used everywhere – from bottles and food packaging to clothes and carpets. It accounts for a quarter of all plastic packaging and textiles sold every year in the US, including over 100 billion PET bottles and over 10 billion polyester garments. Whilst PET bottle recycling is an established industry, recycling rates in the USA lag behind other comparable countries and around 77% of PET bottles and trays are landfilled or incinerated after one use. There is competition for recycled PET from bottles between packaged goods companies and apparel companies, in order to meet ambitious recycled content commitments.

Momentum is gathering to change this: 15 US states have new or pending laws designed to help fix recycling economics, known as Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). New technologies, such as depolymerization recycling, mean the majority of PET packaging and polyester textiles could now be recycled into high value rPET to reduce the competition between these industries.

This webinar will explore questions such as: What could a better system for PET packaging and polyester textiles in the United States look like if proven “circular” approaches to reducing consumption, reuse and recycling are adopted? What would this mean for cutting waste, job creation, and climate change? And what will it take to get there?

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Presenters

Olga Kachook - Moderator

Director, Sustainable Packaging Coalition, GreenBlue

Olga Kachook has now stepped into the Director of SPC position, an evolution from her previous role as Director of Innovation. Olga will provide leadership, aligning the work of the SPC around four pillars; packaging design, recovery, policy and innovation. Existing and new collaboratives will be strategically organized and developed within these pillars. With Olga’s presence and work done surrounding innovation, consumer studies, and collaboratives, she is primed to continue and expand on the foundation that Karen had started. Olga joined the SPC in 2019 after leading corporate sustainability and waste initiatives at World Centric, Etsy, Cascade Designs, and Cascadia Consulting. Her background includes expertise in compostable materials and composting, reuse and refill systems, food waste, life cycle analysis, and sustainable materials management. Olga received her Master of Environmental Management from Yale University’s School of Environment, and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from the University of Washington. She is certified as a LEED Green Associate and a TRUE Zero Waste Advisor.

Cloé Ragot

Manager – Materials & Circular Economy, Systemiq

Cloé is an Associate for plastics & packaging in Systemiq’s Materials & Circular Economy practice and has led the team developing insights for the upcoming report on PET packaging and polyester textiles circularity in the U.S.. Cloé co- authored landmark publications on plastics circularity, including Systemiq’s “Towards Ending Plastic Pollution by 2040” study released in 2023. Prior to Systemiq, Cloé was Head of Policy and Sustainability at Plastic Energy.

Rob Wilson

Director – Materials & Circular Economy, Systemiq

Rob is a Director for plastics & packaging in Systemiq’s Materials & Circular Economy practice. He leads much of Systemiq’s work advising corporates across the plastics and packaging value chain and was a lead author of a report on PET packaging and polyester textiles circularity in Europe. Prior to Systemiq, Rob advised clients on a range of sustainability and strategy topics at McKinsey.

Sandeep Bangaru

Vice President, Circular Platform, Eastman

Sandeep Bangaru leads a team that works daily to transform the future of waste plastic and positively impact billions of people. As vice president, circular platform at Eastman, he works with businesses globally to reduce the amount of plastic waste going into landfills, incinerators and the environment.

He joined Eastman in 2013 as a business manager within Additives & Functional Products and has since held the roles of marketing director and sales director for coatings and inks, and general manager of animal nutrition. Prior to joining Eastman, he spent 10 years at Hewlett Packard, working in the imaging and printing business.

Bangaru earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Kate Davenport

Chief Policy Officer, The Recycling Partnership

Kate Davenport leads the Policy Advocacy and Policy Implementation teams at The Recycling Partnership. The past few years has brought monumental change to recycling and the circular economy effort overall with the passage of significant public policy. We are at a moment to create a new paradigm and it is exciting to work on continuing the momentum and building common ground across sectors and stakeholders. Her work focus as well on how to implement this catalyizing policy to ensure the desired impacts are realized. Kate has an extensive background in environmental sustainability, 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. She was a founding member of the Alliance for Mission Based Recyclers. Her experience spans roles at EcoVentures International, aiding microenterprise development and plastics recycling in South Asia, East Africa, the Caribbean, and the U.S. as well as working for Envirelation, one of the first organic collection companies in the US. She started her career at SustainUS, contributing to UN Environment Program negotiations on sustainability and climate issues.

Mark Agerton

Group Scientist at Haircare R&D, P&G

Mark Agerton has 37 years of experience in the industry as a Chemical Engineer, with 29 of those years spent at P&G. During his time at P&G, he has worked in various roles within the Engineering, FemCare, and HairCare organizations. For the past 12 years, his focus has been on Packaging, specifically in areas such as mold qualifications, polymeric structures, pigment orientation, and analysis of PCR recyclate and impurities. Currently, Mark's primary areas of focus are global sustainability, advanced and mechanical recycling, recycling infrastructure, and conducting Life Cycle Analyses.