PET thermoform recovery surged to 264 million pounds in 2024, but significant circularity challenges persist for recyclers.
PET thermoform recovery in the U.S. and Canada reached 264 million pounds in 2024, marking a 52% increase from the previous year.
This surge, reported by NAPCOR, highlights significant progress in diverting these plastics from landfills, yet a substantial circularity gap persists, affecting material recovery facilities (MRFs) and downstream processors struggling with contamination and low yields.
PET Thermoform Recovery Hits Record, But Virgin Resin Dominates
Despite the record recovery figures, virgin resin still accounts for 79% of the feedstock for new thermoforms, underscoring the systemic issues preventing broader adoption of recycled content. The industry faces persistent challenges with material quality, collection infrastructure, and processing efficiency that limit the true circularity of PET thermoforms.
- 264 million pounds of PET thermoforms recovered in 2024 across U.S. and Canada.
- Recovery represents a 52% increase over 2023 figures.
- 79% of new thermoforms are made from virgin PET resin.
- Yield losses during reprocessing remain a critical barrier to increasing recycled content.
- Label and lid contamination significantly degrade bale quality for MRFs.
Persistent Contamination and Collection Gaps Limit Recycled Content
Yield losses during reprocessing, alongside pervasive contamination from labels and non-PET lids, significantly reduce the usable output from collected thermoforms. Curbside collection programs also frequently exclude thermoforms, forcing consumers to dispose of them as waste. This lack of consistent collection infrastructure means that even with increased recovery, a large volume of recyclable material never enters the processing stream, directly impacting the economic viability for MRFs and plastics reclaimers.
Recyclers must invest in advanced sorting technologies to handle the mixed streams, while brands need to redesign packaging for recyclability. Without these integrated efforts, the cost of processing contaminated bales outweighs the market value for recycled PET (rPET) flakes, creating disincentives for increased recovery.
What This Means for Recyclers
Operators in the plastics recycling sector must recognize the dual reality: increased volume available, but persistent quality challenges. Investment in optical sorters capable of distinguishing PET thermoforms from other plastics and removing contaminants will become critical. Furthermore, recyclers should advocate for extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes that standardize thermoform collection and incentivize design for recycling, ensuring a cleaner, more consistent feedstock for future processing.
