Pricing for natural and mixed-color high-density polyethylene (HDPE) has been increasing to the point where it could test the limits of some buyers, sources say.
Ajit Perera, vice president of postconsumer operations at Talco Plastics Inc., a reprocessor and compounder based in Corona, California, says the rising price of mixed-color HDPE could test demand from some consumers that tend to buy recycled material because of the cost advantage it offers to virgin. “The haggling will happen next month,” he says in mid-February, referring to manufacturers of nursery pots and similar items that are not as committed to using recycled content as other companies are.
Perera says natural HDPE bottle bales are selling for 60 to 65 cents per pound in California, while the material is priced closer to 75 cents per pound on the East Coast where the competition is fiercer.
Mixed-color HDPE bottle bales are selling for 12 to 14 cents in California as of mid-February, a modest increase from the 11 to 13 cents they sold for the previous month, he adds. Prices for mixed-color HDPE bales on the East Coast are higher, Perera says, having reached the mid-20 cent range in mid-February. East Coast mixed-color HDPE bale prices had been in the low 20 cent range since December.
