Champions for Change Program

Cooperative Testing—Generating Results!

We invite consumer product companies, technology companies, suppliers, converters and others to test new bottle compositions directly with commercial plastics recyclers.

These cooperative initiatives:

  • Help ensure that new materials and designs are compatible with the existing plastics recycling infrastructure;
  • Help promote technology transfer so that the recovery of plastic materials keeps pace with new packaging designs; and
  • Help sustain the economics of an industry supplying valuable post-consumer recovered material to markets worldwide

How to Become a "Champion"

Provide on company letterhead, a letter of intent stating that your company wishes to participate in cooperative testing with the recycling members of APR.

OR

If you have engaged in cooperative testing with APR members independently— please inform APR with whom you are working.

A list of APR members is listed under the Membership Information tab on this website.

Stipulations

  • Your company may choose what recyclers it engages in testing.
  • Your company may restrict the dissemination of proprietary information.
  • These programs welcome joint-confidentiality agreements.
  • Testing costs are the responsibility of participants, not APR.

However

APR companies MUST be allowed to make GENERALIZED COMMENTS to the APR membership concerning challenges that new packages may create for the existing plastics recycling infrastructure.

Before You Get Started

Packaging innovators should examine the other documents in this section: the Basic Checklist, Criteria to Consider, and Critical Issues for overall understanding of issues that innovations can create. Next, examine the Design for Recyclability Guidelines for special understanding of issues for specific packaging topics. Then examine the Tests section and Critical Guidance and Applications Guidance protocols for specific tests to conduct.


Additional Program Elements Include:

  • Agreement between the APR member and Champion to assigned action items, completion of items and requisite payment of associated expenses.
  • Agreement on the processing steps to be included and the critical properties/processing parameters to be evaluated.
  • Agreement as to what results will be shared with the APR membership prior to the evaluation.
  • The Champion agrees to provide sufficient representative material for all agreed to testing.

Endorsement

  • The Champions for Change program in no way constitutes a certification or endorsement of any packaging application.
  • APR will NOT certify the recyclability of any bottle.
  • APR will NOT mandate the handling of new bottles to its members.

APR Recognizes Significant Contributions

Should a Champion produce or convert a bottle or package to maximize its recycling potential, based on data from cooperative testing programs, the package and company could receive APR’s Design For Recyclability Award.

Should the Champion engage in the APR Recognition Program and show an innovation meets or exceeds the most strict guidance for APR’s Critical Guidance or Applications Guidance, recognition will be made.

Public relations covering these events will be conducted with the packaging, plastics and environmental press.