PureCycle Resin Recognized as PCR Content Under New Jersey Law

PureCycle Technologies reported that its PureFive (PP) resin can now be recognized as postconsumer recycled content under New Jersey’s Recycled Content Law (N.J.S.A. 13:1E-99.135).

The designation was issued by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) following a review of PureCycle's recycling process. The one-year conditional approval positions PureCycle as a supply option for brands and manufacturers working to comply with the state's recycled content requirements.

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PureCycle will work toward permanent approval with the NJDEP over the next 12 months. That process will include providing documentation of feedstock sources, the type of feedstock processed, end-use applications and additional compliance information requested by the NJDEP.

Clear PP recycled pellets produced by Purecycle’s dissolution process. Source: Matt Stonecash

"We've had significant customer interest due to this mandate, but many were simply waiting for this regulatory clarity from the NJDEP before moving forward," says PureCycle CEO Dustin Olson. 

New Jersey's Recycled Content Law requires manufacturers of rigid plastic containers, beverage containers and other regulated packaging to meet minimum thresholds of postconsumer recycled content. The mandates started at 10% for rigid plastics in 2024 and rise by 10 percentage points every three years until reaching 50%. Food-contact packaging is exempt until 2027, though the qualification process for recycled content in those applications can take many months.

PureFive resin is produced through PureCycle's physical dissolution recycling process, which removes color, odor, additives and other materials from postconsumer polypropylene to create a recycled resin with properties comparable to virgin plastic. The resin has been deemed suitable for food-contact use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, allowing it to be used in a range of applications, including many of the rigid plastic containers that fall under New Jersey's recycled content mandate.

PureCycle sourced more than 10.5 million pounds of postconsumer recycled plastic from New Jersey in 2025. The company expects that volume to increase in 2026 as its Ironton, Ohio, facility continues to ramp production.