Waste management & recycling

1. 1. From open to closed-loop recycling

   → Today, recycling primarily restricts itself to open-loop systems, where materials are converted into new raw materials usually used for a different purpose.

   → The next frontier is closed-loop systems, in which materials can be recycled indefinitely and reused for the same products.

2. 2. Back to basics: process optimisation

   → Waste management and mechanical recycling still largely rely on manual processes, which makes them hard to scale.

   → Investment in automation, for example through the use of sensors in waste collection or machine learning in waste separation, could futureproof the industry against increases in waste and recycling volumes.

3. 3. The other kind of recycling

   → Chemical recycling dissolves plastic waste into its basic elements so it can then be turned into alternative fuels or new plastic. Unlike mechanical recycling, the process works with mixed, contaminated waste, which can be up or downcycled as needed.

   → Startups are hoping to increase adoption by gradually lowering the method’s energy intensiveness and high cost.

4. 4. The future of packaging

   → A significant contributor to waste, packaging usually relies on multiple materials which makes it particularly difficult to recycle.

   → Startups are now tinkering with more easily recyclable mono-materials, and developing bio-based plastic replacements that are recyclable and/ or compostable.

Who early stage startups are up against