CarbonLITE develops marketable product from used bottle caps and labels

CarbonLITE, the world's largest recycler of plastic beverage bottles, has developed a pelletized material using the caps and labels from the plastic bottles it recycles. It is targeting the injection molding industry with its new offering, a blend of polypropylene and polyethylene dubbed CaPOLabel.  

The new product is produced from post-consumer beverage container caps and labels that are ground into flakes and thoroughly washed prior to pelletizing. Using a patented process, the flakes are extruded into a fully homogenized resin. 

"CaPOLabel is an investment in and further dedication to our mission of resource preservation, sustainability and a circular economy," said Jason Farahnik, CarbonLITE's director of strategy and development. "We are taking materials that would otherwise be destined for landfills or our oceans and waterways and creating a valuable low-cost post-consumer product." 

By enabling customers to avoid the use of virgin plastic produced from petroleum, each of CarbonLITE's three facilities prevents the release of over 60,000 tons of carbon emissions annually. CarbonLITE also provides recycled PET produced from ocean-bound plastic waste, a first in the industry, for all types of PET packaging, thereby further helping to keep the marine environment free of plastic pollution. Additionally, the company's PinnPACK Packaging subsidiary specializes in food packaging made from post-consumer recycled plastic. 

"We are always looking for ways to reduce waste and to make it easier for consumers to recycle effectively and efficiently," Farahnik said. "Unlike other post-consumer materials that trade at premium prices over virgin alternatives, CaPOLabel will always be priced below virgin material."