Niagara Bottling Acquires California Recycling Facility to Strengthen Bottle-to-Bottle rPET Production

According to industry reports, Niagara Bottling has acquired a large-scale PET recycling facility in Vernon, California, as part of a move to integrate recycling operations directly into its packaging supply chain and expand domestic bottle-to-bottle production capacity.

The company said it purchased the 305,000-square-foot site and associated assets from rPlanet Earth, which previously operated the facility before it was shuttered in 2025. The site will be reactivated in phases and integrated into Niagara’s broader manufacturing network.

Niagara said the facility will sort, wash and reprocess post-consumer PET into recycled flakes and pellets for use in beverage bottle production, reducing reliance on virgin plastic and strengthening its closed-loop supply chain in California.

The plant is designed to process mixed recycling streams, including so-called “B-bales” from curbside collection systems, which typically contain PET alongside other plastics and contaminants. These feedstocks require additional sorting and cleaning steps before they can be converted into food-grade recycled material.

The company said the acquisition supports a vertical integration strategy aimed at connecting collection, recycling and bottling operations within a single domestic system.

“We’re proud to bring this facility back to life and become one of the few companies in the country with a true bottle-to-bottle process,” said Rali Sanderson, president of Niagara Bottling. “we’re investing in new equipment so we can turn recyclable plastic materials into new bottles, right here in California.”

The company did not disclose the financial terms of the transaction.

Niagara said the facility is expected to produce around 45 million pounds of recycled PET annually once fully operational. The output will be used in its beverage packaging lines across the United States.

The move comes as beverage producers increase investment in recycled content supply chains, particularly for PET, which is widely used in bottled water and soft drinks. California has one of the most developed collection systems in the U.S., making it a key market for recycled resin sourcing.

Industry participants have been expanding domestic recycling capacity amid rising demand for food-grade recycled PET and growing regulatory and voluntary targets for recycled content in packaging.

Californians Against Waste said the investment strengthens closed-loop recycling infrastructure in the state and supports higher recovery rates for post-consumer PET collected through curbside systems.

The facility had been offline since September 2025 and will undergo restoration before returning to full-scale operations. Niagara said it has already begun hiring staff, with plans for approximately 60 employees, including former workers from the previous operator.

The acquisition builds on Niagara’s long-running packaging reduction efforts, including bottle lightweighting and material reduction initiatives aimed at lowering plastic use per unit of product.

Source: Business Wire

SUNSHINE Spotlight: Beverage producers are increasingly integrating recycling assets into their own operations to secure food-grade rPET supply and strengthen closed-loop packaging systems.