It takes a very forward-thinking company to create a whole new subsidiary, one whose sole existence is dedicated to mitigating the environmental footprint that is a byproduct of their manufacturing processes.  That is, however, exactly what Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) did. In late 2007, CCE – the world’s largest bottler and distributor of Coca-Cola beverages – formed Coca-Cola Recycling to develop cost-efficient solutions for reclaiming used beverage containers and beverage packaging materials.  Their goal? To recycle 100 percent of the packaging materials generated by the Coca-Cola system in North America by the year 2020.

John Burgess is the President and CEO of the company and he took some time from his very busy schedule – one that includes trips to oversee the Coca-Cola Recycling Pavilion at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver – to share the success of the honeymoon years of the company. During the interview, Southeast Green received updates on business development, challenges in the current economy and where Coca-Cola Recycling is headed in 2010.

When asked about the scope and scale of the work ahead, Burgess was clearly focused on Coca-Cola Recycling’s motivation. They have a seat at the national level when it comes to contributing in the recycling discussion. “Our participation is very relevant,” stated Burgess. “Our view is this is a national opportunity and it is very important to have a finger on the pulse of what is going on in the recycling industry.”

“The conversation is very different regionally. In each region, we have to consider the local environment that we operate in.” That local environment encompasses what’s happening within a community’s political and cultural level. “It’s not easier in any given place, there are just different challenges,” said Burgess.

It’s nice to know that the Southeast is considered a challenge to tackle instead of being disregarded, as is so often the case. In fact, Coca-Cola Recycling helped launch an incentive-based recycling program in Atlanta in November 2009; the program has had the one of the highest adoptions rates of similar programs in the country. Other Metro Atlanta regions being considered are DeKalb County and Gwinnett County.  Charlotte, NC, will also be coming online in 2010.

The nuts and bolts of operations

Asked about the business environment in 2010, Burgess said that, as would be expected, some markets are bouncing back faster than others. “Fiber and paper markets are larger and not moving fast, but PET (Plastic) is getting better.”

Coca-Cola Recycling has more than 30 internal recycling centers at manufacturing facilities throughout North America.  These facilities collect pre-consumer waste, and each has a target to divert more than 90% of the waste in the facilities from landfills.  Everything from paper to cardboard to plastic to the strapping from the bailing is being recycled, and some facilities across the country have achieved rates of 99.85%.  Coca-Cola Recycling has also begun a joint venture with United Resources Recovery Center to form the world’s largest bottle-to-bottle recycling center in Spartanburg, SC, and other test sites in throughout the Southeast are being considered.  Coca-Cola Recycling is also doing some work with local MRFs (Material Recovery Facility).

Coca-Cola Recycling’s main focus, however, is education. In the sustainable community, this might sound crazy but Burgess pointed out some staggering numbers. “Aluminum is the highest recycled beverage container in the US, but only 55% of it is recycled.” Plastics, in particular PET, at are a distant 27%. In fact, 70% of what is collected from curbside recycling programs is paper. So last year, Coca-Cola Recycling conducted 300 days of education. Most exciting is the direct benefits that have come to the local bottlers.

The focus of the education has been to prevent landfills from being crowded with recyclables. Based on current technology, there is a limit to how much recycled material can go in a “new” bottle so ensuring that the material gets recycled into other products is of critical importance for Burgess and Coca-Cola Recycling. Another challenge with using collecting recycled PET is that the bulk of what Americans recycle goes overseas to be used in manufacturing. So even if Coca-Cola Recycling could capture all of it for use in new bottles, there would be supply issues.

When asked about the need to legislate recycling, Burgess said that Coca-Cola Recycling was more interested in problem solving with local governments instead of influencing policy. A wise choice considering that the market is still changing. “Awareness about the need to recycle is still the key. We need a convenient way to do it. Everyone agrees it should happen but it must be easy to create an infrastructure to support it,” added Burgess.

Plans for 2010?

The first focus is the Olympics in Vancouver. A robust recycling program is planned for the Games, which will be the most sustainable and environmentally-responsible Olympics in history. Coca-Cola Recycling employees have uniforms made out of recycled PET. John even got a snowsuit made out of more than 100 recycled Coke bottles. After the Olympics, look for more Coca-Cola Recycling at NASCAR races and other events throughout the Southeast and nationwide, with additional local education and incentive programs coming online in a community near you.