PROLATA RECYCLED 55 THOUSAND TONS OF STEEL PACKAGING IN 2021

Prolata, a Brazilian non-profit association dedicated to the reverse logistics chain for steel packaging, recycled 55,090 tons of steel cans in 2021, registering an increase of 141% compared to 2020. According to the survey conducted by the association, the South, Southeast and Northeast were the regions that recycled the most during this period, resulting in the revaluation of approximately 28, 16 and 8 thousand tons of post-consumer steel cans, respectively.

The data also reveal that the volume was 1.86% higher than that determined in the Term of Commitment signed by the steel packaging segment with the Brazilian Ministry of the Environment for compliance with the National Solid Waste Policy, which was stipulated at 54,085.05 tons.

Currently, Prolata maintains a series of partnerships with 63 cooperatives in 15 different states in Brazil, which means that it has reached about 1,546 members and also has 33 associated stores. Last year, Prolata also had the support and participation of 14 steel can manufacturers, 26 paint manufacturers, 10 food manufacturers, 26 commercial chains and 3 steel groups, which are responsible for the revaluation and recycling of the material.

According to Thais Fagury, president of the Brazilian Steel Packaging Association (Abeaço) and director of Prolata, “Our goal in 2022 is to expand the program mainly in the Midwest and Northeast regions.

Created in 2012 by the Brazilian Steel Packaging Association (Abeaço), Prolata’s main objective is to enable post-consumer steel cans to be properly disposed of by consumers and revalued in steel mills, transforming them into new cans or other items that use steel as raw material.

Finally, the association has also worked to encourage consumers to dispose of used cans correctly, with communication campaigns and by helping to implement collection points in partnership with retail chains. In 2021, Prolata quintupled the number of available points to 173 spread throughout Brazil.