YL joins U.S. Plastics Pact

Yerecic Label is taking the next steps in our sustainability journey! As an Activator of the U.S. Plastics Pact (U.S. Pact), and member of the Advisory Council for 2023, we’re proud to work with 110+ other organizations in making bold environmental change. By joining the U.S. Pact, we are working with partners across the supply chain to build a circular economy for plastic, in which it never becomes waste or pollution.

What is it?

The first North American Pact of its kind, the U.S. Pact is a consortium founded by The Recycling Partnership and World Wildlife Fund (WWF), as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Plastics Pact Network. The U.S. Pact will follow ambitious precedents set by other global Pacts to bring one unified voice to a national strategy to make a collective system change, not just incremental progress.

While the U.S. Pact is complementary to and follows the ambitious precedents set by the existing global network of Plastic Pacts, it will be tailored to meet the unique needs and challenges of the U.S. market. The U.S. Pact will reflect national priorities and realities, while still propelling the nation closer to other developed nations in its management of plastic waste.

Why is it important & why did we join?

Although there are existing and impactful efforts underway addressing the plastics challenge in the United States, coordinating these efforts is essential to accelerate progress. The U.S. Plastics Pact will create a unified national framework for a circular economy for plastic; creating structure, coherence, aligned goals and associated reporting.

Yerecic Label’s initial introduction into the U.S. Pact was through our customers and suppliers, as well as being members of The Association of Plastic Recycling (APR). After doing research to understand the four targets of the pact, we felt it was important to support our customers and get a better understanding of how we can contribute as an Activator. As the first label company to join the pact, we felt it was important to give pressure sensitive labels a voice at the table.

What are our goals?

As an Activator of the U.S. Pact, Yerecic Label has agreed to collectively deliver against these four ambitious goals:

How do we plan to work towards these goals?

The U.S. Pact emphasizes measurable change and as such, Yerecic Label is committed to transparent, annual reporting, guided by WWF’s ReSource: Plastic Footprint Tracker, which will be used to document annual progress against all four goals.

As we are not producing plastic packaging ourselves, Yerecic Label’s approach is a bit different. We offer different formats of labeling that better impact the recycling of plastic packaging, which enables brands to better keep the sustainable commitments they’ve made. The key component to this is taking part in bigger conversations between industries and bridging the gap between our suppliers’ product offerings and what is being asked of our customers. Many companies are under pressure to deliver large-scale change in a short time frame. Yerecic Label aims to be a resource to guide this change with our knowledge from cross industry collaboration. By doing this, we will create a new normal where designing packaging for circularity is the standard.

Our advice:

It is important to design with recyclability in mind, even if a current stream for the package does not yet exist. Data shows we are fast approaching an inflection point for consumers’ appetite for sustainability, meaning a strong sustainability initiative is not a choice it is a requirement. When looking at product launches, think about the impact of your material selections and the end life for your product. Checking the APR Design Guide is a great starting point in determining what materials may work best for the product’s application. If the material you need does not yet exist, engage your supplier so they are aware that there is demand for this type of sustainable product in their portfolio.

Have any questions about our sustainability journey or our involvement with U.S. Plastics Pact? Leave a comment or contact us today!