AMERIPEN: Advocating for Effective Packaging Policies

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): AMERIPEN is the American Institute for Packaging and the Environment. It is a trade association dedicated to improving packaging and the environment. We are the only material-inclusive packaging industry trade association in the U.S. representing the entire packaging supply chain. This includes material suppliers, packaging manufacturers, consumer packaged goods companies, retailers, and end-of-life materials managers. Our membership also includes a robust array of industry, material, and product-specific trade associations who are essential to the AMERIPEN fabric. We focus on science and data to support our public policy positions, and our advocacy and policy engagement is based on rigorous research rooted in our commitment to achieve sustainable packaging policies. Our mission is to be the leading voice for the packaging industry, using science to inspire, create, and advocate for sustainable solutions for the packaging value chain, and our vision is for packaging to be recognized for all its benefits, including preventing waste and driving a circular economy.

How did this organization develop? We were founded in 2010 and incorporated in 2011 by a group of companies who wanted to fill a gap in advocacy and public policy for the entire packaging industry supply chain for all packaging formats and materials. They also wanted to find more cohesive and proactive ways to communicate and promote the value of packaging. Founding members included ConAgra, Kellanova (formerly Kellogg’s), Sealed Air, and Tetra Pak—all of which are still members today.
Early AMERIPEN offerings included coordination on state and federal advocacy and lobbying on packaging issues, plus networking through its annual meeting. Within a few years, AMERIPEN also started offering in-person salons and workshops for its members and others within the packaging industry to dive deep on the intersection of key packaging issues (i.e., e-commerce, food waste) and public policy. More recently, AMERIPEN has also been offering its members and the public focused multi-session webinar series on important topics like packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR).

How has the organization grown since its inception? What type of professionals/industries make up AMERIPEN? AMERIPEN membership was consistent, at around 25 company members, for many years, and then began to grow further in 2019 when an associate (trade association) member category was added. At the beginning of 2020 we had 36 members, and today we have 109 members. The additional growth has been not only in part due to the implementation of targeted membership recruitment strategies, but also because of the significant increase in packaging legislation and regulation we have seen in the U.S. over the past four to five years.

We have large packaging material supplier members; packaging converter and manufacturer members across all materials (i.e., glass, metals, paper, plastic); brand owner members from many different industries (i.e., beverages, candy, food, household and personal care products, spirits, tobacco, etc.); retailers; and large recycling and waste management companies.

For all member employees that participate in AMERIPEN in one way or another, about half are public policy professionals (government affairs/relations). The remaining half are fairly evenly split between packaging designers and engineers, and sustainability professionals.

What are some of the organization’s most important programs they offer? First and foremost, we are a packaging advocacy and public policy organization. For this, we offer our members a strong committee, taskforce, and workgroup process for them to engage in to drive the legislative, regulatory, and research work we do. We add on to this policy focused legislative and regulatory fly-ins to our state and federal capitols and have become a trusted source for content-rich policy and research webinars. Our Annual Summit for members and special guests has become a go-to meeting for packaging industry professionals looking for real deep-dives into public policy, coupled with fun and meaningful networking and workshop opportunities. At the summit, members get to know each other and their industry even better and get to help shape and implement the AMERIPEN mission and vision.

Why is AMERIPEN important to the waste and recycling industry? The waste and recycling industry is a critical component of the packaging industry supply chain, even more so as more and more packaging converters, manufacturers, and brand owners are needing to meet more and more self-imposed or mandated requirements in the name of sustainability and creating a more circular economy. Whether it be packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR), recycled content demand and supply, or labeling for compostability, recyclability or reusability—packaging converters, manufacturers, and brand owners will never be able to meet their obligations without the assistance of the waste and recycling industry. That is why AMERIPEN welcomes them with open arms to our dialog and our work.

GFL Environmental and WM are our primary waste/recycling company members, plus we have several packaging converter company members across multiple materials (i.e., glass, paper, plastic) who are involved in various forms of recycling—some even have their own material recovery facilities (MRFs). We also have several associate members in the waste/recycling space, including the Ag Container Recycling Council, the Carton Council of North America, the Container Recycling Council (ACRC), the EPS Industry Alliance (EPSIA), the Glass Packaging Institute (GPI), the National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA), and the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA).

Looking ahead, what is coming up for AMERIPEN? After completing our second extended producer responsibility (EPR) webinar series in June, we are now prepping for another three-session webinar series that will run this fall, focused on packaging claims and labeling.

Starting this summer and continuing into 2025, we will be rolling out several new initiatives focused on the value of packaging—for consumers, for policymakers, and for our industry. Not enough is happening in this space, and we are looking to change that as best we can.
In September, we will be collaborating with ReMA (formerly ISRI) at the end of PMMI’s Packaging Recycling Summit in Anaheim, CA, to facilitate a half-day workshop that will explore how packaging professionals and the recycling community can work together to close the gap between them in the interest of designing packaging for positive environmental impact.

In November, we will be back at PMMI’s PACK EXPO in Chicago meeting with current and prospective members, giving several policy presentations, and sharing our involvement and thoughts on where policy and sustainability intersect for the packaging industry.
And as we look towards and head into 2025, our top priority will continue to be engaging on and influencing packaging legislation, regulation, and public policy at the state and federal levels, as we have every reason to believe that the volume of proposals will continue to be high.

How can people get involved in the organization? Because AMERIPEN is a member driven organization, the best way for those within the packaging industry supply chain to get involved directly in what we do is to have their organization become a member. For others, sign up for our general newsletters and media alerts, register for and attend our publicly available webinars, read and respond to our public legislative and regulatory comments and testimony and our research reports. 

Courtesy: www.wasteadvantage.com