Dive Brief:
- The Foam Recycling Coalition (FRC), part of the Food Foodservice Packaging Institute, is awarding grants of about $15,000 to $50,000 to public and private organizations to launch new, or support existing, foam polystyrene recycling programs. Applicants would include entities that run residential curbside recycling programs or material recovery facilities.
- Each grant's dollar amount will be set by individual case, depending on equipment needs. The grantee may need to invest in site preparation, a conveying system, electrical infrastructure, among installation costs. Grantees are required to inform residents that they will be recycling foam polystyrene; continue processing this material for at least three years; and report their volumes to FRC.
- Applications will be received up to April 10 and the first recipient will be announced in late spring.
Dive Insight:
There has been an ongoing, heated debate over whether Styrofoam can be fully recycled. More than 100 municipalities say it can’t be, while The Restaurant Action Alliance, Dart Container Corp., and many other municipalities say it can.
At the least, there is very limited infrastructure to process this material. FRC is trying to change that.
"With greater end-market demand for foam polystyrene equipment and handling, our funding program helps recycling facilities include foam polystyrene in their accepted recycling materials,” said Lynn Dyer, president of the Foodservice Packaging Institute, as reported in Environmental Leader.
Little by little, MRFs are adding this material to their accepted waste stream as Denver’s Alpine Waste & Recycling and Colchester County, Nova Scotia did last year when they were awarded FRC grants.
