Reliable Caps and PureCycle Launch Polypropylene Closures with High PCR Content

According to company reports, Reliable Caps and PureCycle Technologies have partnered to produce polypropylene closures containing up to 75% post-consumer recycled content for packaging applications requiring high purity and regulatory compliance.

The companies said the closures are manufactured using PureCycle’s PureFive Ultra recycled polypropylene resin and are now available through Reliable Caps’ distribution network across much of its caps and closures portfolio.

The launch targets packaging segments such as food, beverage, personal care and household products, where converters have historically faced technical limitations when incorporating recycled polypropylene into contact-sensitive applications.

PureCycle said its dissolution recycling process removes contaminants, colour and odour from post-consumer polypropylene, producing recycled resin designed to perform similarly to virgin material. The company said the resin is suitable for applications where appearance consistency, melt flow stability and regulatory approvals are critical.

Reliable Caps said earlier recycled polypropylene grades often presented challenges related to processing consistency and product quality during production runs.

“For years, we've been searching for a recycled polypropylene that met our customers' PCR requirements, carried sufficient FDA approvals, and processed more like a virgin resin,” said Cameron Manuel, president of Reliable Caps. “PureFive® resin solves all of that. Its consistency and processing qualities are closer to virgin resin than anything else we've worked with, which means we can hold tight quality standards throughout an entire production run.”

The companies said the closures are produced using domestically sourced recycled material and carry chain-of-custody certification through GreenCircle Certified standards.

The partnership comes as packaging producers and consumer brands face tightening recycled content requirements across North America and Europe. Extended Producer Responsibility frameworks in several U.S. states, along with the European Union’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, are increasing pressure on packaging suppliers to incorporate higher levels of recycled material while maintaining compliance for food-contact and consumer-facing applications.

PureCycle said the development demonstrates the commercial viability of recycled polypropylene in packaging categories traditionally dominated by virgin resin.

“Reliable Caps’ success in producing these closures is exactly the kind of milestone we envisioned when we began commercializing this recycling technology,” said Alexander King, senior vice president of commercial for the Americas at PureCycle Technologies.

The companies said the closures provide brand owners with certified recycled content documentation needed for sustainability reporting and regulatory filings, areas that are becoming increasingly important as packaging regulations evolve.

Source: PureCyle

SUNSHINE Spotlight: Packaging manufacturers are accelerating the use of high-purity recycled polypropylene in contact-sensitive applications as recycled content mandates tighten across global markets.