Ball Corp. reports higher recycled content use

Ball Corp. has released its 2023 combined Annual & Sustainability Report, which indicates its used 70 percent recycled content in the aluminum cans it produced last year.

“Ball continues to work with suppliers to increase the recycled content of its products and achieved a global beverage packaging average of 70 percent recycled content, up 4 percent from the prior year,” the company says.

The Westminster, Colorado-based aluminum can and bottle maker credits recycling as well as increased renewable electricity coverage for helping it achieve 29 percent year-on-year reductions it its absolute greenhouse gas emissions, which includes Scopes 1-3.

By the end of last year, all Ball's rolling mill suppliers were members of the Aluminum Stewardship Initiative (ASI), and 21 percent of metal procured in 2023 was ASI-certified metal.

The company also published the second edition of its “50 States of Recycling Report,” which the packaging firm says “reaffirms the critical role policy plays in ensuring high recycling rates.”

"Following the divestment of our aerospace business, this past year presented an opportunity for us to clearly declare who we are as a focused aluminum packaging sustainability leader with an expansive product portfolio,” Ball Corp. CEO Dan Fisher says.

“We embark on our next chapter with vigor and a relentless focus on delivering value by leveraging the full extent of our manufacturing expertise, winning operationally by prioritizing efficiency, and forging lasting customer relationships by actively listening to our customers’ needs and partnering with them to make a difference."

According to Ball, its 2023 report also details its global portfolio of aluminum cans and bottles that serve the needs of its beverage, personal care and household products customers as they seek packaging solutions.

“By focusing on leveraging aluminum’s inherent properties of recyclability, circularity and unmatched durability, Ball delivers packaging solutions that meet customer needs and advance their sustainability and climate goals, as well as Ball's own," the company says.

In anticipation of greater demand for sustainable aluminum packaging, Ball also has taken action to fully leverage the benefits of its scale, agility and efficiency to ensure a robust and sustainable product supply for customers over the near- and long-term. "While contributing trends will vary each year, we are encouraged by the actions taken by our value chain partners to implement measures that continue making progress towards Ball's Climate Transition Plan, our comprehensive science-based decarbonization plan focusing on achieving critical emissions reductions by 2030," the company says.

“We are making measurable progress toward achieving our 2030 goals while also building a strong network of diverse partners to advance circularity within the industry,” adds Ramon Arratia, chief sustainability officer of Ball Corp.