IPG facility awarded TRUE zero waste certification - Recycling Today

Posted by Posted by Chris Voloschuk

The Danville, Virginia, manufacturing plant of Intertape Polymer Group (IPG) has been awarded Total Resource Use and Efficiency (TRUE) zero waste certification under the TRUE rating system administered by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), Washington.

According to IPG, a Sarasota, Florida-based packaging product manufacturer, TRUE helps facilities measure, improve and recognize zero-waste performance by encouraging the adoption of sustainable waste management and reduction practices, which contribute to positive environmental, health and economic outcomes.

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The Danville facility, which produces carton sealing tape, stretch film, air pillows and polyethylene (PE) tape, is the first IPG site to obtain this certification. The company says its Danville team has implemented numerous recycling initiatives over the years and now has a diversion rate of 97.5 percent. In 2023, IPG says its plant diverted over 16 million pounds of material from the landfill, mostly through recycling efforts.

“We are extremely proud of our employees at the IPG Danville manufacturing facility for earning the TRUE zero waste certification,” says Michael B. Jones, director of global energy and sustainability at IPG. “This prestigious certification represents the plant’s leadership in sustainability and ongoing efforts to protect the environment by redesigning processes, recycling, reducing and reusing materials.”

Additionally, the Danville facility has earned the Cradle to Cradle Certified Bronze designation on carton sealing tape, and its stretch films have achieved Cradle to Cradle Certified Silver status. IPG says it has undergone a process of qualification against a series of prescribed tests that evaluate these products’ material health, material reutilization, the measure of renewable energy consumed to create the products, stewardship of the water used in production and adherence to social fairness standards.

“Businesses must go beyond current wasteful practices and think critically about how to redesign processes so that less waste is produced in the first place,” says Peter Templeton, president and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council and GBCI. “Implementing zero-waste business practices requires rethinking, retraining, new tools and strong leadership to change current waste streams. With IPG’s leadership in this endeavor, they are making great strides for their employees, community and consumers at large.”