Join us as we participate in the Vermont Reuse and Recycle Initiative organized by Eco Friendly Beer, Reusable Solutions, and Casella Waste with the goal of diverting plastic packaging, prevalent in the craft beer and cider industries, from ending up in the waste stream.
Rob Vandenabeele aka The Eco Friendly Beer Drinker is an environmentalist who happens to love beer. Through his many deep dives into systems of production, waste, reusing, recycling and the environment, he realized that the plastic PakTechs most breweries use as carriers for their 4 / 6packs are often not actually being recycled despite misleading marketing for said PakTechs. Over the years there has been no solid solution for this in place, until now!
The program is simple. You bring your plastic can carriers (also known as PakTechs) to our brewery and give them to our bartenders, and we will ensure they are picked up, cleaned, and reused by other breweries, or, in rare cases, sent to Casella Waste to be *properly* shredded, pelletized, and used to make new plastic products. At the end of the day, the best thing that can happen with these carriers is that they are reused.
There's more cool news. We're not the only place you can drop off your PakTechs! There are 24 other breweries, cideries, and beer/liquor stores that are participating in this program in Vermont, and we won't be surprised if this number grows. Find the link at the end of this post for the full list of participating establishments and for TONS more valuable info on recycling both in general and as it relates to the beer industry.So far, we’ve collectively rescued 10,000+ can carriers in Vermont! We’re off to a good start, so help us keep it going!
(Carriers returned to us or any other breweries don’t need to be ones from beer purchased at that same brewery. They can be from anywhere, including a store or bottle shop) Thank you for helping reduce plastic waste and we look forward to collecting more PakTechs from you!
p.s. - keep an eye out for this "Return Here" image. It is being used by many participating establishments to let you know you can drop your PakTechs off there!
