PepsiCo backs recycling push in Latin America

United States-based PepsiCo is paying attention to and investing in recycling in Latin America, according to an interview with the company’s regional president by Santiago, Chile-based business information service provider BNamericas.

In the online interview, Erick Scheel, president of PepsiCo Latin America Beverages, says his organization is “incorporating more recycled content, making our packaging recyclable, compostable or biodegradable and streamlining packaging material” in Central and South America.

The BNamericas article notes that Chile has become the first country in the region to pass an extended producer responsibility (EPR) law that extends to several different types of packaging. Scheel adds that in addition to its plastic recycling efforts, PepsiCo is examining plastic and glass reusable container options.

Scheel does not identify aluminum as a reason, but also tells BNamericas, “In Latin America Beverages, 93 percent of the materials we use in our packaging are recyclable, and we continue working on solutions for the 7 percent that is not. By 2025, 100 percent of our packaging will be recyclable. We are also incorporating more recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) content into our bottles across the portfolio.”

Scheel also identifies the ECOCE organization in Mexico as an ally in that nation. He refers to ECOCE as an industry recycling association that “brings together the private sector, government and civil society to create a recycling system for packaging of consumer products.”

He continues, “The purpose is to achieve a circular economy solution for packaging, focused on collecting and recycling post-consumer waste. It also has the role of raising awareness and educating consumers through collection and recycling programs.”

The full interview between BNamericas and Scheel can be found on this web page.