Guadalajara, Jalisco – Arca Continental, the second largest Coca-Cola bottler in Latin America, and PetStar, Mexico’s leading PET recycler, will invest 175 million pesos this year in the construction and expansion of PET collection and recycling plants in Jalisco.
In celebration of world recycling day, to be commemorated on May 17, the CEO of PetStar, Jaime Cámara, announced that the collection plant located in the San Martín de las Flores neighborhood of Tlaquepaque will be expanded, saying “Such an important investment in Jalisco will allow us to double our recycling capacity in the state…”.
Jesús Lucatero, the Director of Public Affairs of Arca Continental Mexico, explained that in 2021 alone the company recovered more than 5,000 tons of PET (the type of plastic it uses in its beverage containers) in Jalisco, and to date, through the PetStar national collection network, they recover seven out of 10 bottles that they put on the market with the vision of recycling 100% in line with the goal of “a world without waste”.
With the announced investment, the center installed in Jalisco will create 1,500 direct jobs and will double its capacity, with the aim of exceeding 9,000 recycled tons of PET.
“As part of the third phase of the national investment, which is more than 170 million pesos, Arca Continental will strengthen the model that makes it easier for recyclers to add value to waste as well as strengthen the culture of recycling and sustainability,” Lucatero said.
During the event, held on the eve of the celebration of World Recycling Day, Jaime Cámara said that the announced investment will allow the recycling of 9,600 tons of PET from 21 municipalities in Jalisco and will provide service to the new collection centers that will be located in Puerto Vallarta, Tepic and Colima, adding to the eight plants they already have in the country.
“We don’t want to throw bottles on the street, so we’re going to increase our ability to collect them and reconvert them into other bottles and support the culture of recycling,” he added.
As a whole, the company collects and recycles more than 3,297,000 PET bottles a year, equivalent to filling the Akron Stadium in Zapopan 4.2 times. In addition, more than 1,500 medium and small companies dedicated to recycling are served.
“We have witnessed how PET containers, which were once in dumpsters and represented damage to the environment, today are the most collected and recycled materials on the continent, with a rate of 58.8% in Mexico. Nationwide, the recycling of PET generates 70,000 indirect jobs for urban waste pickers and collectors,” Cámara emphasized.
Sources: El Economista • Informador • Government of the State of Jalisco
