Novolex Releases Second Annual Sustainability Report
The report outlines the company’s wide-ranging sustainability efforts, the use of recycled content key among them. In 2019, the company increased its use overall of post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber and resin in its products. For its fiber-based products, the percentage of recycled fiber in the company’s supply chain was nearly half the total procured. When using post-consumer recycled (PCR) material was not possible, Novolex focused on procuring Chain of Custody (COC) certified prime fiber content traceable to the original source. When combined, 69% of fiber volume was either PCR or COC-certified content, an increase of 4% over 2018. Plastic resin used by Novolex consisted of 4% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content and 20% post-industrial resin in 2019, the same percentages as the prior year. While the reported 4% PCR is the same in 2018 and 2019, Novolex purchases of PCR material increased in total pounds. That was driven in part by the company’s two world-class polyethylene recycling centers, which specialize in recycling plastic consumer retail bags as well as films such as dry-cleaning bags, newspaper bags and other items labeled for “store drop off” recycling programs.