Haadthip (HTC), the Coca-Cola bottler for 14 southern Thai provinces, has signed an MOU with recycler Oxitech and resin producer Royce Universal. The agreement, signed in September 2026, moves their community-based bottle-to-bottle PET scheme from pilot to regular, full-scale rPET supply. Used bottles from island communities such as Koh Yao Noi are sorted and flaked in Krabi and turned into food-grade rPET pellets in Nakhon Pathom. The pellets are then made into new bottles at HTC's Phunphin plant in Surat Thani.
Why this mattersA Coca-Cola bottler formalising community-sourced food-grade rPET supply shows how regional closed loops are being built, though volumes so far are measured in tens of tonnes.
- HTC, Oxitech and Royce Universal signed an MOU in September 2026 to move from pilot to regular, full-scale rPET procurement
- HTC produces and distributes Coca-Cola beverages in 14 southern Thai provinces
- Bottles are collected on Koh Yao Noi, flaked in Krabi, pelletised in Nakhon Pathom and made into bottles at Phunphin, Surat Thani
- About 22 tonnes of HTC PET bottles entered Koh Yao Noi and Koh Yao Yai in the prior year; the community scheme recovered about 60 tonnes of PET
- PET that fails food-grade checks is recycled into polyester fibre for textiles
China Resources Chemical Materials, a Changzhou-based PET producer within China Resources Group, has received a US FDA no-objection letter confirming its chemically recycled post-consumer rPET can be used across all food-contact categories, the first such letter for a Chinese company. The resin, made via depolymerisation and repolymerisation of waste PET bottles rather than mechanical recycling, reached 30,000 tonnes of sales in 2025 at a 25 percent recycled-content grade. The company says the FDA letter eases export and plans to scale a 50 percent recycled-content grade by the first half of 2027.
Why this mattersChemically recycled rPET cleared for all food-contact uses gives Chinese PET producers an export route into the US and adds recycled-content supply for brand owners.
- FDA no-objection letter confirms the chemically recycled rPET can be used in all food-contact applications, the first for a Chinese PET producer.
- The company began developing the chemical recycling process in 2018, taking eight years to solve impurity removal issues.
- In 2025 the company sold over 30,000 tonnes of 25 percent recycled-content food-grade rPET, consuming about 8,600 tonnes of recovered PET bottle flakes.
- Cumulative rPET sales since launch exceed 75,000 tonnes.
- The company has PET capacity of 3.3 million tonnes, PETG capacity of 50,000 tonnes, PA66 capacity of 40,000 tonnes, and serves customers including Coca-Cola, Nongfu Spring and L'Oréal.
- A 50 percent recycled-content rPET grade is planned for industrial-scale production in the first half of 2027.
The Coca-Cola Company has begun switching its STONEY ginger beer in South Africa from brown bottles to clear PET, starting with the 2.25-litre pack in June 2026, with the remaining pack sizes to follow over time. Coca-Cola South Africa says clear bottles are easier to collect and recycle. The move follows a similar switch of SPRITE in South Africa from green to clear plastic.
Why this mattersClear PET commands a higher recyclate value than coloured bottles, so brand-owner switches of this kind improve feedstock quality for South African reprocessors.
- STONEY ginger beer, a Coca-Cola brand, is moving from brown bottles to clear PET in South Africa
- Phased rollout began in June 2026 with the 2.25-litre bottle; remaining pack sizes follow over time
- Label and closure colours are kept consistent across all variants under the new packaging
- Coca-Cola previously switched SPRITE in South Africa from green to clear plastic bottles
- Mario I. Garcia, vice-president and managing director of Coca-Cola South Africa, ties the change to collection and recycling value chains
Coca-Cola is phasing out traditional pack formats in favour of smaller sizes across several markets, including Brazil, to keep unit prices lower amid persistent inflation and weaker purchasing power. Smaller portions hold down the price per pack even as the cost per litre rises. The shift is already under way in the United States and is set to extend to Brazil and other markets; the company frames it as a portfolio reformulation rather than a retreat from Brazil.
Why this mattersA pack-size downsizing by the world's largest beverage brand reshapes format and fill-line demand across the container and closure supply chain.
- Coca-Cola is reducing pack sizes in the US with expansion planned to Brazil and other markets
- Smaller portions are intended to keep the price per pack lower, even though the cost per litre is proportionally higher
- Coca-Cola guides for 2026 earnings-per-share growth of 8% to 9%
- The company frames the move as a portfolio reformulation, not an exit from Brazil
