Recycling Cannabis Plastic Waste – Cannabis News, Lifestyle

Recycling cannabis plastic waste doesn’t necessarily have to happen. You might think you’re recycling that wasteful plastic container by throwing it in a blue bin. But most cannabis containers are low-grade plastic waste. Chances are good that this plastic ends up in a landfill or goes abroad to be incinerated.

But a man from Edmonton puts a stop to it.

When Corey Saban was sent home from work due to Covid lockdowns, the father-of-three realized just how much plastic his family has been through. He decided to do something about it and started a recycling business in his garage.

“I’ve only just started experimenting with disposable grocery bags in my garage, a griddle you cook pancakes on, and an iron you use to iron your clothes,” says Saban.

introduction [Re] Waste

While still in his garage, Saban struck a deal with the city of Beaumont to recycle the city’s plastic waste. “Then some news channels like CBC, CTV and Global picked up our story,” says Saban.

After some media attention, the cannabis industry got involved.

Saban has partnered with two Canadian cannabis retailers. Nova Cannabis, the parent company of Value Buds, and High Tide, the parent company of Canna Cabana. Both companies are the country’s largest retailers.

“I told them,” Saban says, “I’m pretty straight forward; I just said I’m still in my garage. I would love to move out and be able to manage all your businesses and continue to grow with you. So it will take a little time on my part to get going, but if you’re ok with that, we can definitely look into starting a program.”

Months later, Saban was out of the garage and over at Edmonton International Airport with his own facility and four full-time employees. “Initially it was, ‘There’s no way we’re going to exceed a team of three’, and that was quickly exceeded. And then, with the space we had, we thought, “We’re never going to outgrow this space, there’s no way,” and now we’ve outgrown that space.”

Recycling cannabis plastic waste

[Re] Waste works with cannabis retailers to develop customized solutions for their plastic waste. Saban will ask, “How can we repurpose plastic waste to make it useful in your industry or that you can use in your business?” For cannabis retailers, the answers range from shelves to display cases to consumption supplies.
[Re] Waste is behind the Canna Bin, a collection bin made from 100% recycled cannabis containers. By collecting unwanted cannabis containers, Saban hopes to keep plastic out of landfills.

He says a big problem is that many cannabis plastics are low-grade plastics. And the supply chain is not ready for recycled plastics.

“If you look at mass manufacturers that produce millions of units of plastic products, they need a very consistent plastic, which is mostly virgin plastic pellets. So now if you’re working with recycled pellets, it’s a bit more complicated. It doesn’t have as much consistency as virgin plastic. It is difficult to work with recycled plastics in the supply chain.”

The canna bin

consumers want Recycle cannabis plastic waste

Most, if not all, cannabis users are upset by the amount of plastic waste the legal industry has brought. It’s clear that consumers want a better solution. Recycling cannabis plastic waste is a major concern. “We’re starting to see customers voting with their dollars,” says Saban.

“It’s interesting just being in the cannabis space…consumers are so passionate about the environment and their voice is being heard because it’s such a new industry and there are so many of them. So it’s really the consumers who go to the retailers and say, ‘I have a bag full of plastic that I know is going to landfill. You have to help me. I need you to do something.” So it’s really the retailers that are starting to listen to the customers. They just want their plastic waste to be managed better than existing options.”

In the first year of legalization, Canada’s cannabis industry generated 6.4 million kilograms of plastic packaging waste.

Working with benevolence

Recycling cannabis plastic waste doesn’t just help the environment. They also give back to the community. Saban has worked with Goodwill by participating in his career liaison program.

“We work with Goodwill to provide employment opportunities to people of all skill levels. We currently have four amazing volunteers on the Career Connections program. And specifically what we have these volunteers do is remove the seals from all cannabis lids. It’s not like paper. It’s really there, we have them remove the seals from the lids, and then we can take that and go straight to our processing. So they are very involved in the success of our cannabis program.”

[RE] Waste is also working with Goodwill to reduce its plastic waste. [Re] Work uses the plastic to make building materials like countertops and moldings.

Find a canna jar at your local cannabis shop today!