2010 Awards to Again be Held with Recycle Glass Week

The Glass Packaging Institute celebrates the 21st year of the Clear Choice Awards, which recognizes the contribution glass packaging makes to the image, marketability, sustainability and success of food, beverage and cosmetic products. Clear Choice Awards winners will be announced on the GPI website the week of September 12, during GPI’s Recycle Glass Week. And GPI will again hold a virtual Clear Choice Awards event to showcase winners.

“Designing and packaging in glass ensures that your product has the competitive edge, as more and more consumers demand glass for its pure, recyclable, and premium characteristics,” says Joseph Cattaneo, president of the Glass Packaging Institute. “Glass containers continue to lead the pack in providing the aesthetics consumers want in a ‘green’ package.”

GPI will award top package designs in the following categories: Beer; Wine; Food; Carbonated Beverage; Non-Carbonated Beverage; Distilled Spirits; Flavored Alcoholic Beverage; Organic Food or Beverage; and Fragrance/Cosmetics/Other. GPI will also choose one glass package to receive the Clear Choice Award for Overall Package Design, and honor eligible entries with GPI’s Conversion Recognition. There is no fee to enter. All entries must be postmarked by July 10, 2010. More entry details

Mark Your Calendars—GPI Announces 2010 Recycle Glass Week

Recycle Glass Week 2010 to be held September 12–18

GPI’s second annual Recycle Glass Week is planned for September 12-18, 2010. During the week, GPI and its member companies will hold nationwide activities and events to build awareness and boost glass bottle recycling. We’ll also announce the 2010 Clear Choice Awards winners, and recognize Friends of Glass, those organizations or persons that recycle glass or promote the recycling of glass as a way to better the environment.

“After the success of last year’s event, we’re delighted to announce Recycle Glass Week 2010, which will offer even more community recycling events and ways for consumers to get involved,” says Glass Packaging Institute president, Joseph Cattaneo. “We’re asking consumers to recycle their glass bottles and jars to help reduce the amount of recyclable materials entering landfills and to help make new glass containers.” More

Saint-Gobain Wins EPA's ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Award for Second Straight Year

For the second year in a row, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has named Saint-Gobain Containers, Inc., a leading producer of glass containers for the food and beverage industries in the U.S., as ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year. The award, which recognizes outstanding energy management and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, will be presented at a ceremony in Washington, DC, on March 18, 2010.

“The Partner of the Year Award underscores our commitment to limiting the environmental impact of our manufacturing processes and protecting the health of the communities where we live and work,” says Gilles Colas, General Delegate for Saint-Gobain in North America.

Through a wide range of energy-awareness programs, process improvements, and energy management practices in 2009, Saint-Gobain businesses in North America were able to reduce their energy intensity by 2.2 %—equivalent to the amount of energy needed to make nearly 486 million glass bottles or enough fiber glass insulation for more than 100,000 typical U.S. homes. The company's energy-use reduction equated to a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions released to the atmosphere of more than 70,000 tons last year. More

PACKAGING TRENDS

WineLovesGlass.com Engages and Educates Wine-Drinking Consumers

Website and blog highlight glass packaging for wine and open debate about alternative wine packaging

Wine drinkers have a new resource for need-to-know wine news and trends at the just-launched WineLovesGlass.com. The new website, developed by glass packaging manufacturer Owens-Illinois, Inc. (O-I), aims to educate visitors about the benefits of wine in glass bottles and the important role packaging plays in protecting the taste, look, and aroma of wine.

“Our goal in creating the site was to help those who are just learning about wine, especially the millennial generation, understand why wine is best in glass bottles, and why other packaging alternatives often fall short,” said Kelley Yoder, marketing manager of wine for O-I North America. “The site will also give wine drinkers a sense of how glass packaging impacts all facets of the wine drinking experiencing including its flavor preservation qualities, aesthetic appeal, and social acceptance.” More

Follow “ChooseGlass” on Twitter and Win an iPod Shuffle!

GPI is giving away an iPod Shuffle to our 1000th follower on Twitter. Follow us @ChooseGlass for your chance to win!

LEGISLATION

Maryland Holds Hearings on Recycling Legislation

The Maryland legislature held hearings earlier this month on two pieces of recycling-based legislation. HB 982 would define commodity specific recycling goals for the state, and HB 944 would require the majority of bars and restaurants to recycle their beverage containers. HB 944 is similar to a North Carolina ABC permit holder recycling law, which has increased the annual tonnage of top-quality glass recycled in the state by approximately 72,000 tons per year and boasts a high bar and restaurant participation rate.

HB 944 would require, beginning January 1, 2012, bars and restaurants located in counties with populations greater than 150,000 to recycle glass, aluminum, and plastic beverage containers sold on-premise. The legislation also requests that the beverage distributors work together with their customers to develop a comprehensive recycling program for the covered containers.

Dan Steen, on behalf of O-I, and Bryan Vickers, on behalf of GPI, testified in support of the legislation, introduced by Delegate Doyle Niemann. HB 982 would also define “recycling” as a process that results in the manufacture of new or similar products. Importantly, this bill recognizes the connection between recycling programs and the end markets that rely on them. Both bills are supported by the Sierra Club and a coalition of state environmental groups. The bills go to committee within the week.

GLASS RECYCLING

Partnering in Muncie, IN Boosts Local Glass Recycling Efforts

Saint-Gobain Containers (SGCI), headquartered in Muncie, Indiana, has joined forces with Muncie Mission to promote and increase local glass bottle recycling. This includes drop-off collection and outreach to local restaurants.

Muncie Mission has established a weekly route throughout the city to pick up glass recyclables, and SGCI donates recycling collection bins for organizations that want to get involved. Currently eight organizations are participating in the program—everything from restaurants to churches. Plus, Muncie Mission offers drop-off glass collection at their recycling facility.

And in August of 2009, SGCI expanded glass recycling efforts at its Muncie headquarters. All employees were given a recycling bin to collect glass recyclables at home and return them to the drop-off container located in the headquarters parking lot [photo above]. Muncie Mission then picks up the recyclables, takes them to their recycling center and removes any contaminants. The finished cullet is used at SGCI’s Dunkirk, IN plant to make new glass container. As of February 28th, SGCI employees have recycled nearly ten tons of glass.

Indiana Recycling Leaders Tour Saint-Gobain Containers Plant

Saint-Gobain Containers hosted a tour for the staff of the Indiana Recycling Coalition (IRC) at their Dunkirk, IN plant in March. IRC staffers Carey Hamilton, Monica Whitfield Brase, and Katie Graham learned about the mechanics of the glassmaking process, including Saint-Gobain's use of cullet to manufacture new glass bottles. Using cullet benefits the environment and Saint Gobain's bottom line.

“The IRC spends just as much time explaining how recycling benefits Indiana's economy as it does explaining how it benefits our environment,” said IRC Executive Director Carey Hamilton. The IRC is working to familiarize its membership with why the industry is seeking more glass containers collected through recycling programs. “Hearing how Saint Gobain uses cullet in its manufacturing process as a way to save money, which can later be used to help it expand and grow, really helps us sell others on the benefits of recycling,” says Hamilton.

During Recycle Glass Week in September 2009, the IRC visited a cullet processor to understand the challenges of marketing material from single-stream collection programs. The GPI is also working with the IRC to promote ways in which bar and restaurant programs can provide additional volumes of cullet to be used to make new bottles and jars.

1000 WORDS

The Bottle Bank Arcade: Making Glass Bottle Recycling Fun!

TheFunTheory.com, an initiative from Volkswagen, proves that fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better. They turned a typical European bottle bank for recycling glass bottles and jars into an arcade, complete with lights and noise. In just one night, the bottle bank arcade was used by nearly 100 people, while during the same period, the nearby conventional bottle bank was used twice. Watch the fun