Updates to U.S. Plastics Pact's Unnecessary and Problematics Materials List Recognizes the Role of Innovation

Whereas the previous version of the list identified specific label substrates that were always considered problematic, the newly released version now defers to the Association of Plastics Recyclers (APR). If a label construction has APR recognition, meaning that its design is compatible with the North American recycling system, it is not considered part of the unnecessary and problematic materials list. Magnomer’s Magmark SS™ coatings have APR recognition for use on PETG, and therefore, when PETG is paired with Magmark SS coatings, it is not considered problematic, according to the new wording. 

Uncoated PETG shrink film is detrimental to recycling since its lower melting temperature relative to PET flake creates “clumping” challenges at the point of extrusion. It is this reason why uncoated PETG shrink has been part of the Unnecessary and Problematic Materials List. Magmark SS coated PETG, however, is magnetized, and is thus able to be removed from the PET flake stream by magnets already present in recycling operations. Captured label flake can be recycled as part of fiber grade PET. 

"We want to acknowledge the ongoing innovations occurring in recycling and the circular economy," stated Jonathan Quinn, CEO of the U.S. Plastics Pact. "We aim to celebrate new innovations that help us achieve our goals, particularly when they make strides to push boundaries while still aligning with standard manufacturing processes." 

 

According to Ravish Majithia, Magnomer Founder & CEO, “PETG is a common label substrate chosen because of its superior shrink properties, branding appeal, and its ability to sync with common manufacturing processes. We are pleased to offer a solution that allows brands to meet critical recyclability goals, and which allows them to do so in a way that fits with their current processes.” 

 

About the U.S. Plastics Pact: 

The U.S. Plastics Pact brings together businesses, not-for-profit organizations, government agencies, and research institutions that work together toward a common vision of a circular economy for plastics, as outlined by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Initiative. This vision aims to ensure that plastics never become waste by eliminating the plastics we don’t need, innovating to ensure that the plastics we do need are reusable, recyclable, or compostable, and circulating all the plastic items we use to keep them in the economy and out of the environment.  

 

Magnomer is a U.S. and India based startup introducing a patented magnetizable coatings technology (Magmark) to impart sortability features for recyclable packaging. Magmark™ coatings are food safe and print as a transparent varnish to impart magnetization on flexible films such as bottle labels without affecting branding. Magnetization complements widely used magnetic separators in plastics recycling operations and allows for the separation of the labels from the bottles without changes to the system. This is critical since labels can otherwise present both contamination and equipment clogging challenges in the recycling process. Magnomer received industry recognition from the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) in 2023 on the basis of a first ever commercial scale recyclability test of PETG shrink labeled bottles, which allows PETG labels coated with Magmark SS to be used in compliance with the APR Design® Guide. 

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