Cleaning product association pushes for emphasis on recycling, reuse in packaging design

The American Cleaning Institute (ACI), Washington, has announced a new road map for sustainable packaging as part of the cleaning product supply chain’s commitment to a more circular economy.

ACI’s ambition for the industry is for all cleaning product packaging to be circular. The road map for reaching this goal includes a drive toward improving packaging design by ensuring packaging is recyclable or reusable, reducing virgin material use and increasing postconsumer recycled or renewably sourced content.

“In accordance with the principles of a circular economy, our challenge around product packaging is to design out waste and pollution and keep materials in use while maintaining the packaging’s essential functions,” ACI Director of Sustainability Melissa Grande says. “Getting there will take creativity, innovation and collaboration inside and outside the industry.”

ACI’s roadmap for achieving its circular packaging ambition includes:

• pushing stakeholders to design cleaning product packaging for reuse or recycling, improving the industry’s Materials Circularity Index score 25 percent by 2025;
• advocating for the industry to embrace technologies to improve its Materials Circularity Index score an additional 25 percent by 2030; and
• working with external stakeholders, evolving systems of recovery to eliminate all cleaning product packaging waste by 2040.

“A first step in reaching our ambition includes striving for 100 percent of cleaning product packaging to be reusable or recyclable,” Grande says. “To support this milestone, ACI is currently developing resources for our members to help them design products with this goal in mind. We also understand how critical it is to evolve our systems of recovery across the U.S. and will continue to engage and support collaborations driving towards systemic change.”

More information about ACI’s circular packaging goals are available online.