Alliance in Colombia targets PET bottle recycling

An alliance reached between two companies in Colombia has been designed to boost PET bottle recycling in that nation.

According to an online article from the El Colombiano news organization, PET packaging maker Apropet Colombia will continue and expand its ability to accept PET bottles from Socya, a network of discarded bottle collectors.

Socya currently collects some 615 tons per month of PET bottles, according to the article, and starting July 1, 2017, is now directing its entire supply toward Apropet Colombia. Bogatá-based Apropet describes itself as making food-grade PET resin from recycled materials for Peru-based packaging maker San Miguel Industries (SMI).

In the El Colombiano article, executives from Socya and Apropet Colombia refer to the new alliance as a “clear win-win that will strengthen the recycling chain of PET in Colombia.” The companies also say they intend to increase the volume collected and processed to 1,000 tons per month, drawing material from several Colombian cities, including Medellin, Bogotá, Barranquilla and Cali.

The Apropet official the article quotes says, "Until now the biggest challenge of Apropet has been to get all the raw material required by San Miguel.”