Partnership aims to improve plastic recycling efforts in South America, Southeast Asia

Washington-based Delterra, a global nongovernmental organization (NGO) focused on solving environmental challenges, has formed a strategic partnership with three large consumer packaged goods companies to reduce plastic pollution in the global South, starting in Argentina, Brazil and Indonesia.

According to a news release from Delterra, Zurich-based Amcor; McLean, Virginia-based Mars; and Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble (P&G) have partnered with the NGO to help scale upstream and downstream solutions for a circular plastics economy, jointly committing $6 million over five years toward the effort. Delterra says the companies have a shared commitment to urgent environmental action and a shared understanding that the challenge of plastic pollution cannot be solved without a systemic and holistic approach to roll out scalable and sustainable programs to boost the transition to a circular economy.

The partnership plans to invest in programs across the value chain, such as implementing Delterra’s Plastic IQ globally to help companies understand and improve their plastic footprint upstream; working on supply and demand to capture recyclable and compostable materials and return them to productive use with Delterra’s Rethinking Recycling program; and innovating material traceability solutions to provide transparency on material source and quality across the recycling value chain.

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Delterra says the partnership aims to provide easy access to waste management and recycling systems to people in Argentina, Brazil and Indonesia. The organization tells Recycling Today that its initial focus on Indonesia and Argentina is in line with its strategy to find what is universally true and what is culturally unique and apply those learnings as it scales its work. Delterra adds that its expansion to provide solutions in Brazil is a first foray to that nation. 

In addition to providing funding to drive waste and recycling solutions in those countries, Delterra says Amcor, Mars and P&G will provide input into Delterra's future programs and markets, including Plastic IQ and material traceability, in alignment with their sustainability commitments. The companies will also share insights and opportunities based on each organization's expertise and experience in piloting company-driven packaging sustainability initiatives to date. Delterra says the partnership will foster collaboration with other cross-sectoral organizations in a precompetitive approach.

“This partnership of leaders from the packaging value chain will make a real difference in creating a circular economy for packaging and eliminating plastic waste from the environment,” says David Clark, vice president of sustainability at Amcor. “Our partnership with Delterra in Latin America has shown us that shared commitments enable great progress when working collaboratively. We understand the critical importance of stemming pollution at the source by designing waste out of the system and returning plastic into the value chain as recycled content.”

Amcor previously partnered with Delterra in 2021 on its Rethinking Recycling initiative in Latin America to help Delterra introduce waste collection services to households in Olavarría, Argentina.

According to Delterra, the partnership is welcoming other like-minded organizations to join the partnership in helping find solutions to develop a circular economy for plastic in the South.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Amcor, Mars and P&G on our joint mission of eliminating waste in the environment,” says Shannon Bouton, president and CEO at Delterra. “Solving plastic pollution—and indeed the broader waste crisis—requires a rethinking of the way we produce and manage waste. This includes a rapid expansion of waste collection and sortation and reliable recycling markets, alongside a deeper redesign of how we consume. We are inspired that these organizations are stepping up to this challenge alongside Delterra, and we invite more companies to join this growing partnership.”