Glass Packaging Institute

October 23, 2023

We are pleased to welcome The Glass Packing Institute as a new Supporting Advisory Members to Northeast Recycling Council

Formed in August 2017, NERC’s Glass Committee seeks to better understand the recycled glass value chain and gaps in the Northeast, and to promote greater diversion of glass containers to the highest-value end uses. Despite the fact that glass is 100% recyclable and can be recycled endlessly without loss in quality, challenges to the use of recycled glass exist. The weight of recycled glass presents challenges to transport over distances. In addition, debate continues over preference for extended producer responsibility (EPR) or bottle bills, although efforts are being made to reconcile the two approaches. A NERC webinar held in the Spring concluded that “bottle deposit systems and extended producer responsibility programs for packaging can complement each other, but need to be run effectively.”


With these opportunities and challenges in mind, NERC enthusiastically welcomes the Glass Packaging Institute (GPI) to its growing roster of Sustaining Advisory Members. According to GPI President Scott DeFife, “We are the national trade association representing glass container manufacturers, glass recyclers and their supply chain partners in North America.”


“We support efforts to expand collection of glass containers and increase recycling rates of glass across the country,” DeFife notes. “We have successfully begun several initiatives in various areas to collect more glass from the hospitality sector, as well as supporting expansion and modernization of deposit return systems and extended producer responsibility programs that improve recycling.”


The positive impact of GPI’s membership has been felt quickly, as DeFife commented on the Glass Committee’s most recent report, which found that three-quarters of Northeast states use recycled glass as Alternative Daily Cover (ADC), instead of being used to manufacture new products. ADC is glass used as cover material placed on the surface of the active face of a municipal solid waste landfill.


“For years, GPI has been working to make policymakers and recycling stakeholders aware of this ongoing challenge, and we thank NERC for highlighting this issue,” DeFife stated. “GPI agrees with the report’s conclusion that more investment in glass recycling infrastructure would help decrease material contamination, and increase the volume of quality glass suitable to be recycled into new containers.”


“Local governments and states should re-consider providing any diversion or recycling credits to entities using glass as a landfill cover substitute, or for disposal of glass in any similar manner,” DeFife continued. “ADC should only be allowed after all other end market options for glass sorted by Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs) are explored.”


Weighing in on the debate over EPR vs. bottle bills, DeFife stated, “There is ample proof that we need more bottle return programs, not fewer. It is in states and communities’ clear and vital interest to pass DRS (deposit return system) legislation, especially those legislatures that are also considering extended producer responsibility programs for packaging. Curbside pickup will remain a recycling staple but must remain supported by proven recycling programs that create higher volumes of cleaner streams of recyclable material.”


In addition to actively advocating for improved glass recycling infrastructure, GPI hosts the Clear Choice Awards (CCA) for glass packaging. The awards highlight “consumer product goods manufacturers who find noteworthy ways to use glass packaging to tell the story of their brand, create glass packaging designs that stand out from others, and help brands meet their sustainability goals,” according to GPI.


The involvement of the nation’s leading trade association in efforts to improve glass recycling is an essential step toward realizing such improvement. NERC looks forward to working further with GPI on our shared goals.of its solutions to the wider community.


For more information about the Glass Packaging Institute click here

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Rethink Resource Use 2026

By Sophie Leone • November 4, 2026
What We Learned in Princeton

Northeast recycled commodity prices rise in Q2

By Keith Loria | Resource Recycling • October 30, 2026
Recycled commodity values at Northeast MRFs increased for the second consecutive quarter as Q2 2026 figures show gains across most materials outweighed a 61% drop in PET, according to the Northeast Recycling Council. In the latest report, average blended values reached $93.03/ton without residuals, up 11.1% from Q1. Including residuals, the value climbed 15.24% to $76.37/ton, NERC said. The gains extended a recovery from Q4 2025, when average values fell to five-year lows of $68.41/ton without residuals and $52.49/ton with them. Values rebounded 22.37% and 26.26%, respectively, in Q1 2026 , though the latest increases came at a slower pace. That late-2025 trough followed declines in OCC, mixed paper, aluminum cans and several plastics grades. Natural and color HDPE were among the exceptions, posting gains during Q4. The new results therefore show a broader recovery in commodity pricing, though PET has continued moving lower through the first half of 2026. PET averaged $40.48/ton in Q2, with reported prices ranging from $8.47 to $70. The resin also declined in Q1, when most other commodities began recovering. Other plastics posted substantial increases. Color HDPE rose 122% to $293.63/ton, while natural HDPE increased 10% to $1,471.31/ton. Polypropylene climbed 72% to $345.37/ton, and mixed plastics Nos. 3-7 advanced 39% to $186.52/ton. OCC increased 17% to $99.21/ton, while mixed paper fell 5% to $45.57/ton. Aluminum cans gained 5% to $2,171.29/ton, and steel cans rose 4% to $221.29/ton. Glass remained mixed. Clear and green container prices declined, brown glass held steady, and three-mix glass carried a negative average value of $37.71/ton, meaning MRFs paid to move the material. The quarterly survey collected commodity pricing from 19 MRFs across 12 states. Two facilities were excluded from the blended average because they marketed insufficient material during Q2 to provide a representative comparison. That calculation included 13 single-stream and four dual-stream or source-separated facilities. Single-stream values rose 12.3% to $91.28/ton without residuals and 11.37% to $74.74/ton with residuals. Dual-stream and source-separated values increased 8.04% to $98.65/ton without residuals and 28.33% to $81.62/ton with residuals, remaining above single-stream values on both measures. Residuals are incoming materials that cannot be marketed and require disposal. The measure without residuals reflects a ton of marketed recyclables; the measure including residuals accounts for managing unmarketable material in each ton processed. Disposal costs increased during Q2, although facilities may calculate those costs differently, NERC noted. The report covers Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia. Collection systems and state policies affect which materials reach participating facilities. Beverage container deposit programs, for example, divert some glass bottles, PET bottles and aluminum cans away from MRFs, reducing potential revenue from those materials. Single-stream collection remains the most common approach represented in the survey. NERC cautioned that differences in collection programs, market access and operating conditions limit how the regional averages can be applied locally. “This data is not intended to serve as a price guide for MRF contracts,” the organization said. Read on Resource Recycling.

Northeast Average Commodity Value Continues to Increase Despite PET’s Sharp Drop in Q2 2026

By Megan Fontes • October 29, 2026
NERC’s Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) Commodity Values Survey Report for April – June 2026 reflects the continuing rise of commodity values across the Northeast after several quarters of decline. Dual stream/source-separated MRFs continued to report higher average commodity values than single stream MRFs. The average blended commodity value increased by 11.1% to $93.03 per ton without residuals and by 15.24% to $76.37 per ton with residuals in Q2 2026 compared to Q1 2026. Single stream values increased by 12.3% to $91.28 per ton without residuals and by 11.37% to $74.74 per ton with residuals. Dual stream values increased by 8.04% to $98.65 per ton without residuals and by 28.33% to $81.62 per ton with residuals.