PET recycling rate inches upward.

Recent figures from the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR), Sonoma, Calif., and the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR), Washington, show that the PET recycling rate reached 23.1 percent in 2005, for a total of 1.17 billion pounds of post-consumer containers.

The 2005 figure is an improvement from 2004's recycling rate of 21.6 percent and reflects the highest PET container collection volume to date.

The volume of PET containers available for recycling within the U.S. in 2005 increased by 9.4 percent to 5.075 million pounds relative to 2004, according to the report.

"We are very pleased to report another increase in the PET recycling rate and in the volume of containers collected in 2005," Gerri Walsh, NAPCOR's chair and director of packaging industry affairs for Ball Corp., says. "Using recycled PET supports a more energy-efficient and sustainable manufacturing chain and reduces greenhouse gas emissions." She adds, "While we are pleased to report a higher recycling rate, there is increased demand for recycled PET, and we will continue our efforts to promote and encourage more recycling of PET containers to support the growing number of manufacturing applications that use recycled PET feedstock."

More than 860 million pounds of recycled PET were used in 2005 in U.S. manufacturing applications, which included fiber for carpet and apparel, strapping, sheet, film, food and non-food containers.

Information in the report was obtained through surveys conducted by R.W. Beck and Moore Recycling Associates and data generated by NAPCOR and the PET Resin Association (PETRA).

The report, titled "2005 Report on Post Consumer PET Container Recycling Activity," is available on the NAPCOR and APR Web sites at www.napcor.com and www.plasticsreyclcing.org, respectively.