The Brazilian Aluminum Association (ABAL) and Associação Brasileira dos Fabricantes de Latas de Alta Reciclabilidade (Abralatas) have jointly announced that 248,000 tons of used beverage cans were collected and recycled in Brazil in 2011. That total pushed the UBC recycling rate in Brazil to a record 98.3 percent, and the groups say Brazil has the highest UBC recycling rate of any country.
According to the two associations, Brazil’s UBC recycling rate has been the best of all countries since 2001. Last year 18.4 million aluminum containers were recycled in the country. (To see a larger version of this chart click here)
According to Renault de Freitas Castro, CEO of Abralatas, the beverage can manufacturing industry in Brazil has been investing continuously to meet the growing demand for aluminum cans. “In 2012, the industry increased its production capacity by 9.5 percent, moving from 21 billion to 23 billion units per year, according to Castro.
Carlos Roberto de Morais, coordinator of ABAL’s recycling committee, says of Brazil’s UBC recycling rate, “This result has its foundation in a chain structured more than 20 years ago that guarantees a strong and consistent demand that remunerates all the links involved therein.”
According to an ABAL press release, the collection of UBCs has injected $310 million into the Brazilian economy.
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