Dow accelerates diversion efforts

Chemicals and polymers company Dow Inc., says a collection of projects and agreements underway will result in a potential 3 million metric tons of circular and renewable solutions per year by 2030.

“We are expanding our commitments to address plastic waste and meet customers’ increasing demands for more sustainable and circular products,” says Jim Fitterling, board chair and CEO of the Midland, Michigan-based company. “Through investments in key technologies, infrastructure and strategic collaborations, we are expanding our ‘Stop the Waste’ goal to reflect the transformation of Dow’s plastic franchise and leadership to enable a circular economy."

Fitterling says the company plans to increase the value of secondary material and enable a new industrial ecosystem to grow. This will allow Dow to scale its ability to produce circular and low-carbon emission solutions.

The company points to several recently announced offtake agreements and projects designed to help reach that target, including:

• agreements with London-based Mura Technology to construct multiple “advanced” recycling facilities in the United States and Europe, collectively creating as much as 600,000 metric tons of annual capacity;
• an investment to build what Dow calls the largest single hybrid recycling site in France, managed by Valoregen, designed to secure a source of post-consumer resin (PCR) for Dow;
• a collaboration with Atlanta-based Nexus Circular on a recycling project based in Dallas that ties into Dow’s previous Hefty EnergyBag collaboration with Nexus and Reynolds Consumer Products;
• mechanical recycling collaboration with Boomera LAR in Brazil;
• an investment in Mr. Green Africa and an agreement to co-develop what Dow calls “more traceable, fair, and high-quality PCR” that can be used to make new flexible plastic packaging; and
• a memorandum of understanding with Lucro Plastecycle to develop and produce polyethylene (PE) film made with PCR plastics in India.

RELATED: Braskem signs off-take agreement with Nexus Circular

“Our expanded sustainability target reflects our commitment to raise the bar for ourselves and the broader industrial ecosystem as we leverage our materials science expertise, commitment to circular innovation and productive collaboration with our partners,” says André Argenton, Dow’s chief sustainability officer and vice president of environment, health and safety.

Dow says it also has formed a new business platform, Circular & Renewable Solutions, that is “aligned within” its Packaging & Specialty Plastics operating segment. Daniella Souza Miranda leads the new business platform as its global business director.

“Today’s announcement demonstrates our strong commitment to increase our use of feedstocks from recycled and renewable sources,” says Diego Donoso, president of Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics.

Progress toward the 3 million tons target will be included in the company’s consolidated environmental, science and governance (ESG) report, known as INtersections, found here.