The US Flexible Film Initiative (USFFI), a 501(c)(6) nonprofit membership organization working to demonstrate scalable solutions for the recovery and recycling of flexible plastic packaging, has awarded its first round of contracts.
Through this initial round, USFFI has partnered with Valemi Inc. and GreenWaste, two companies with Materials Recovery Facilities (MRF) collecting residential recyclables in California, as well as EFS Plastics and Merlin Plastics, two plastic film reclaimers. To date, USFFI has moved more than 3 million pounds of flexible plastic packaging from California MRF collection programs to reclaimers in the U.S. and Canada for processing. Following the successful completion of these loads into a variety of commodities, USFFI has facilitated offtake agreements supporting up to eight loads per month of recycled flexible plastic.
Consistent with USFFI’s mission, the awards are intended to help test and demonstrate approaches that can support the collection, sorting and processing of flexible plastic packaging at scale. The initiative is initially focused on California, with the potential to scale to other states with emerging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programs.
Flexible packaging plays an important role in delivering safe, convenient products while also helping to reduce food waste. However, recognizing the infrastructure and resource challenges facing municipal recycling programs in the U.S., USFFI is focused on helping advance solutions.
The initial RFIs were open to a range of solution providers, including material recovery facilities, processors, and recyclers with the capability or near-term potential to handle flexible plastic packaging. Information gathered through the RFI process helped inform the structure and focus of this first round of contracts and will continue to guide future program development.
USFFI opens second round of RFIs
Building on the results of this first round, USFFI has issued two new Requests for Information (RFIs), inviting responses from California-based material recovery facilities (MRFs) and from plastic reclaimers and secondary processors prepared to receive materials sourced from California MRFs. As with the initial RFI process, USFFI is seeking entities interested in operational funding to support the sorting and baling of recovered flexible plastic films and packaging; the purchase of mixed flexible plastic films and packaging as feedstock for a secondary process that produces flake, pellet, or product; and transparent reporting on material quality, tonnage, and recovery rates.
USFFI encourages all interested stakeholders to review the new RFIs and submit responses to help shape the next phase of flexible packaging recovery.
USFFI recognizes that measurable and effective progress will require coordinated action among brands, recyclers, policymakers, investors and other stakeholders working across the system.
Published November 2026
