Key facts
- US PET bottle collection rate declined to 30.2% in 2024, down from 32.5% in 2023.
- Total volume of PET bottles available for recycling increased by 3.5% to approximately 6 million lb.
- Consumption of recycled PET (rPET) across US and Canadian end markets decreased.
- The price premium for rPET over virgin PET reached as high as 38% on the US east coast.
- Imports of rPET reached a record 395 million lb, representing 23% of total consumption.
US polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle collection rates declined in 2024, while demand for recycled PET (rPET) weakened, according to the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR). The US PET bottle collection rate fell to 30.2% in 2024 from 32.5% a year earlier, despite a 3.5% rise in the total volume of bottles available for recycling to about 6 million lb.
Concurrently, total consumption of rPET across US and Canadian end markets dropped, indicating reduced demand for recycled material. This has created an imbalance in the PET recycling market, where supply and recovery are improving but end-market demand is not keeping pace.
On the supply side, PET availability expanded. Imports of virgin and recycled PET for bottle applications increased by 8%, and US reclaimers processed 1.97 billion lb of material, a 1.5% increase from the prior year. Recovered PET thermoforms saw significant growth, jumping 52% to 264 million lb, driven by better identification and sorting technologies. However, this did not translate into stronger demand for recycled content.
Post-consumer recycled (PCR) content use in PET thermoforms sharply declined to around 12% from 18% a year ago. This decrease is attributed to shifting end-market dynamics and economic pressures, including growth in food and foodservice packaging which typically uses lower recycled content.
Pricing played a crucial role in curbing demand. The premium for rPET over virgin PET widened significantly, reaching 38% on the US east coast, compared to 11% at the start of 2024. This cost pressure influenced converters' decisions. Higher domestic rPET prices also encouraged substitution towards cheaper alternatives, leading to a record 395 million lb of rPET imports, making up 23% of total consumption, while some manufacturers reverted to virgin resin.
Most recovered thermoform material is processed with bottles rather than recycled back into thermoform packaging, limiting closed-loop systems. NAPCOR noted that while meeting food-contact requirements is achievable with the right technology, cost remains the primary barrier to thermoform-to-thermoform recycling for food-contact applications.
NAPCOR highlighted policy as a potential driver for increased demand. While several US states have introduced recycled content mandates, most do not cover non-bottle rigid packaging like thermoforms. New Jersey is an exception, with a 10% recycled content requirement for non-food rigid plastic packaging set to expand to food-contact applications in 2027. The association suggested that mandates or eco-modulation incentives through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programs could boost PCR usage in thermoforms.