Recycled Content

Recycled Content host Kara Pochiro and Miriam Holsinger, Co-President and Chief Operating Officer at Eureka Recycling, take you behind the scenes of one of the nation's cleanest Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) to explore their critical role in the recycling supply chain.  Miriam shares her expertise on how recyclables are collected, sorted, and processed at MRFs, and explains the technologies...

This month, Recycled Content host, Kara Pochiro, is joined by APR's Technical Director as a co-host of the pod, Scott Trenor. Kara and Scott welcome authors of the "Untangling the chemical complexity of plastics to improve life cycle outcomes" study, Dr. Kara Lavender Law, Research Professor of Oceanography at Sea Education Association, and Dr. Margaret Sobkowicz, Professor of Plastics Engineering...

On the newest episode of the Recycled Content Podcast, host Kara Pochiro focuses on creating packaging that is Circular by Design® that can be used to manufacture a clean supply of post-consumer recycled resin (PCR). Kara is joined by Gary Panknin, Sustainability Officer and Plastic Materials Procurement Manager at PakTech, a secondary packaging manufacturer based in Eugene, Oregon focused on crea...

The Association of Plastic Recyclers' (APR) Chief Policy Officer, Kate Bailey, joins Recycled Content host Kara Pochiro to focus on battling the misinformation being spread regarding plastic waste and recycling. Kate and Kara break down major headlines and claims regarding the plastic recycling industry that are often aimed at taking down the plastics industry rather than focusing on the benefits...

As we approach the 4th of July, show host Kara Pochiro is joined by APR's Technical Director, Scott Trenor, to discuss all things recycling in the summertime. The duo talks tips for improving recycling at summer events, along with advice on how manufacturers of summer products, such as sunscreen, can design for recyclability. Their conversation dives into the importance of knowing what can be recy...

Recycled Content Host and the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro, is joined this episode by two fellow APR colleagues, Rebecca Mick, Program Director for Film & Packaging Innovation, and Ruben Nance, APR Program Director responsible for the management and growth of APR's Preferred Design Recognition (PDR) Program. The team discusses the...

The Recycled Content Podcast welcomes back Emily Tipaldo, Executive Director of the U.S. Plastics Pact, for a sit-down with show host and VP of Communications & Public Affairs at APR, Kara Pochiro. With the Pact turning four, as well as Earth Day and INC-4 just around the corner, the two discuss the meaning of the current moment in the plastic recycling industry's efforts to manage material th...

Ahead of the 2024 Plastic Recycling Conference, Recycled Content is back with a new episode hosted by the Association of Plastic Recycler's (APR) VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro as she sits down with Steve Alexander, President & CEO of APR, and Maite Quinn, a lead member for Resource Recycling's Plastic Recycling Conference planning team. Kara, Steve, and Maite discuss th...

Host and APR's VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro, is joined by Stephanie Baker, Director of Market Development for KW Plastics' Recycling Division. Kara and Stephanie discuss how KW got its beginnings from the disposal process for automotive battery casings and has now turned into a closed loop recycling business in Alabama, revitalizing the recycling economy with over 500 empl...

APR President & CEO, Steve Alexander, is back on Recycled Content with host Kara Pochiro to discuss and reflect upon 2023. The two give updates on their predictions and resolutions from earlier this year, talk about the current state of the recycling industry, and how APR is a key component of progress made. Steve and Kara break down the recycling industry's main issues in 2023 including chang...

Host and APR's VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro, is joined by Bruce Magnani, APR's Legislative Advocate in California, and VP of Houston Magnani Associates. Kara and Bruce start by breaking down the basics of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and California's SB 54 that focuses on packaging. The two discuss the EPR wave that is passing through various state legislatures,...

Host and APR's VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro, is joined by Dale Gubbels, the 2023 Advocacy Champion Award recipient and CEO of Firstar Fiber. Dale and Kara break down Dale's early days of recycling and how Firstar Fiber has evolved into one of the largest materials recycling facilities (MRFs) in the Midwest. They decode Firstar's successful business model - diversifying sou...

On this week's episode, APR's VP of Communications and Public Affairs, Kara Pochiro, is joined by Curt Cozart, Chief Operating Officer of APR and lead of the APR Design® Guide Training Program and other technical projects. Kara and Curt continue the conversation on package design from the last episode, diving into the world of PET, a plastic often used for beverage bottles, and also one of the mos...

On this episode of Recycled Content, host Kara Pochiro is joined by Ruben Nance, Program Director for the Meets Preferred Guidance (MPG) Recognition Program at APR. Ruben and Kara talk about what makes packages truly recycling compatible through an examination of APR's Design Guide, the different Recognition Programs that APR offers, and the current strides being made by companies, including APR m...

This week on the pod, APR's VP of Communications and Public Affairs Kara Pochiro is joined by not one but two Kates- APR's Chief Policy Officer Kate Bailey and APR's Program Director Kate Eagles. Kara sits down with both Kates to discuss their recent APR blog post highlighting the importance of post-consumer resin (PCR) as an integral part in reducing the environmental impacts of plastic packaging...

As we get ready for this year's Plastics Recycling Conference, a gathering of over 2000 power players in plastics and recycling industries, the Recycled Content team welcomes back Dan Leif, managing editor at Resource Recycling, Inc. Host Kara Pochiro and Dan discuss hot topics in plastics recycling that will be covered at the conference, including the issues that keynote speaker Monica Medina, As...

In Recycled Content's first episode of 2023, host Kara Pochiro is joined by Steve Alexander, President and CEO of APR, to highlight the progress made in 2022 and what APR is focusing on moving into 2023. Kara and Steve discuss the rising tide of misinformation surrounding plastics recycling, how APR was able to amplify its engagement in state and federal legislation, the progress made on extended...

On this episode of Recycled Content, we sit down with APR board member Nicole Janssen, President of Denton Plastics, to discuss all things polypropylene. Host Kara Pochiro and Nicole set the record straight on polypropylene and debunk recent reports that cast doubt about its recyclability. Tune in to hear about how polypropylene is now one of the fastest growing resins to recycle, and an update on...

On this episode of Recycled Content, APR sits down with two representatives from member companies Unilever and Nestle. Nicole Camilleri, the Packaging Sustainability Manager at Nestle, and Melissa Craig, the Senior Manager for Packaging Sustainability in North America for Unilever, helped shine a light on what the future holds for both companies, including initiatives to create products that are c...

APR was glad to be back, and in person, for the 2022 Plastics Recycling Conference. The event brought together a record number of industry decision-makers to tackle some of the most pressing issues facing the industry. In this episode of Recycled Content, we are joined by Dan Leif, the managing editor at the Resource Recycling, Inc. Tune in for a lively conversation covering the highlights from th...

On January 25th the U.S. Plastics Pact released its Problematic and Unnecessary Materials List as a first step in accelerating progress toward a circular economy for plastic packaging in the United States. On this episode of Recycled Content, hosts Steve Alexander and Kara Pochiro went straight to the heart of the matter with Emily Tipaldo, Executive Director of the U.S. Plastics Pact. Tune in to...

Our host Steve Alexander is joined this week by Kate Davenport, Co-President of Eureka Recycling, to discuss Eureka's work and mission of demonstrating that waste is completely preventable, not inevitable, challenges that materials recovery facilities are facing, and the future of recycling.

Our host Steve Alexander is joined this week by Kate Bailey, Policy and Research Director of Eco-Cycle, to discuss her work advocating for a zero waste future, her insights on the packaging crisis, and the challenges she sees for the future of recycling and potential paths forward.

Our hosts Steve and Kara are back to discuss the value and benefits of post-consumer resin (PCR), APR's PCR Certification Program, and the importance of distinguishing between "post-consumer" materials and "post-industrial" materials for labeling purposes.

Steve is joined today by Dan Leif and Tonya Oyala, Resource Recycling's Managing Editor and Sponsor/Exhibitor Manager, respectively. Dan, Tonya, and Steve discuss the upcoming Plastics Recycling Conference, now in its 16th year, which is the focal point for the increasingly complex and international plastics recycling industry. Tune in for more information about the virtual event and why you can't...