WM and Tropicana launch national recycling initiative

Tropicana and Waste Management announced the launch of a national initiative to increase the number of juice and milk cartons recycled.

Waste Management will be accepting juice and milk beverage cartons. The initiative will kick-off the long-term goal of increasing beverage carton recycling to every community across the nation.

In areas currently accepting cartons, residents can easily recycle juice, milk, soy, broth and other cartons through their curbside recycling program. For consumers who separate recyclables, cartons can be placed with bottles and cans.

Tropicana, Waste Management, Dean Foods and the Carton Council launched a successful pilot in Tampa, Florida to expand carton recycling and to educate consumers to recycle their cartons. Encouraged by the Florida pilot, the initiative is now expanding to include all areas that Waste Management has recycling processing facilities.

Waste Management separates the cartons from the other recyclables and sends them to secondary mills for recycling. Juice and milk cartons, like those used by Tropicana, are recycled through a process called hydropulping, which recovers the paper fibers. The fibers are then recycled into tissue, paper towels, and other paper products.

The Tropicana carton is largely made of a renewable resource (85 percent paper and 15 percent polymer). The paperboard in Tropicana’s carton recently received certification from the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.