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Dec 15 – Today, Closed Loop Partners released a report dispelling myths and demystifying the rapidly growing landscape of plastic alternatives, with a focus on bio-based plastics, biopolymers and compostable products and packaging. The report unpacks the opportunities and challenges within the industry’s move toward these alternative materials, considering sustainable sourcing of feedstocks and end-of-life recovery pathways that recapture their material value after use.

Currently, only 9% of the world’s plastic is recycled globally, while 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enters our oceans every year––costing people, the planet and business*. In response, consumers and regulators are increasingly pushing companies to align their products and packaging with waste reduction and climate impact goals. This pressure has led to companies making ambitious public commitments for implementing plastic-free products, eliminating non-recyclable formats and increasing the recycled content in their packaging. This, in turn, has spurred a rapid and, at times, haphazard shift away from petroleum-based, single-use plastics that are bound for landfill. 

As companies deploy strategies to reduce, reuse and recycle plastics in their products and packaging, many are exploring bio-based plastics, biopolymers and compostable alternatives such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and polylactic acid (PLA). If formulated in accordance with certification standards and captured properly after use, compostable packaging can contribute to net positive climate impacts by contributing to carbon sequestering, nutrient-rich compost and help increase diversion of food scraps from landfills. The promise of compostable packaging is resulting in rapid growth: the market for biopolymers and bio-based plastics is expected to reach nearly $27.9 billion by 2025, up from $10.5 billion in 2020, with over 2.8 million metric tons expected to be produced in 2025, up from 2.1 million metric tons in 2020**. 

However, compostable alternatives are not a silver bullet, and as they begin to enter the market at higher volumes, there is not enough recovery infrastructure to recapture their full value efficiently. Only about 185 full-scale commercial composting facilities in the United States accept food waste, and even fewer accept compostable-certified packaging. With new materials already outpacing the capacity of our existing recovery infrastructure, there is a critical need to address the misalignment between production and end-of-life to ensure even higher volumes of compostable packaging don’t end up in landfill in the future. Ultimately, biopolymers and compostable alternatives must sit within the broader context of a number of plastic waste mitigation strategies; they play a very specific role as one line of defense against waste––after reduction and reuse ––and should only be deployed in certain formats and contexts to drive value to organics processors. 

“This report does not seek to define one material as environmentally superior to another, but instead, dispels some myths around this growing sector of compostable packaging, laying the groundwork for informed decisions on when reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging might be most appropriate,” says Kate Daly, Head of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners. “We continue to research, explore, and test, and invite you to join us on our collective journey toward a circular economy that eliminates waste and builds sustainable, inclusive systems for all.”

Closed Loop Partners applies a holistic circular economy framework to the assessment of these new materials, based on the firm’s unique expertise garnered from their ecosystem of funds. Closed Loop Partners’ investment platform spans venture capital to private equity, and the Center for the Circular Economy specializes in convening brands and stakeholders to solve shared material challenges. 

* UN Environment. Beat Plastic Pollution, Breaking the Plastic Wave: Top Findings for Preventing Plastic Pollution 

** Bioplastics & Biopolymers Market, Market update 2020: Bioplastics continue to become mainstream as the global bioplastics market is set to grow by 36 percent over the next 5 years

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and project finance, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy. The firm has built an ecosystem that connects entrepreneurs, industry experts, global consumer goods and technology companies, retailers, foundations, financial institutions and municipalities. Their investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and diversion of materials from landfills. Learn more at www.closedlooppartners.com.

Dec 10, New York — Today, Closed Loop Partners announced that JS Capital Management, the private investment firm led by Jonathan Soros, has acquired a minority stake in Closed Loop Partners, the New York-based investment firm and innovation center focused on building the circular economy. JS Capital’s investment expands the firm’s existing partnership with Closed Loop Partners. In 2018, JS Capital became a limited partner across Closed Loop Partners’ funds and an active co-investor.

Closed Loop Partners’ asset management division is comprised of venture capital, project finance, growth equity and private equity. To date, the firm has invested in over 40 companies across sectors, including consumer products and packaging, fashion, food and agriculture and technology. Investors in Closed Loop Partners’ funds include the world’s largest retailers, consumer goods and technology companies, financial institutions, family offices and foundations. Closed Loop Partners’ innovation center, the Center for the Circular Economy, works across brands, countries and industries to create the systems change necessary for the advancement of the circular economy through research, analysis and collaboration.

According to Jonathan Soros, “Ron Gonen and Closed Loop Partners have been pioneers as investors and thought leaders in the circular economy. Their networks and expertise are unparalleled in the field.”

“With an exceptional investment track record and deep commitment to a sustainable future, JS Capital makes an ideal partner for the next chapter of our growth,” says Ron Gonen, Founder and CEO of Closed Loop Partners.

A circular economy offers a viable business framework to reduce costs, increase efficiency and protect the environment we share, benefiting people, the planet and business. At a time when climate change and sustainability are no longer top of mind for only waste-conscious consumers, but for investors, brands and governments across the globe, business as usual must change to avoid the economic, social and environmental risks of climate inaction.

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and project finance, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy. The firm has built an ecosystem that connects entrepreneurs, industry experts, global consumer goods and technology companies, retailers, foundations, financial institutions and municipalities. Their investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and diversion of materials from landfills. Learn more at www.closedlooppartners.com.

Griin, a pioneer in on-demand zero-pollution roasting, today announced it has secured $2M in Seed Round investment, led by Closed Loop Ventures Group, the early-stage investment arm of Closed Loop Partners. Griin’s countertop roasting solution is poised to change the commerce of coffee by bringing green coffee beans directly to the forefront of the trade and into the hands of the consumer, focusing on the workplace coffee segment. Doing so eliminates unnecessary international transportation of coffee beans to centralized roasting facilities and the multilaminate packaging required to artificially preserve the freshness of previously roasted coffee On demand roasting offers an elevated experience with a better quality for the most sustainable cup of coffee.

The investment by Closed Loop Partners, a leading circular economy-focused investment firm will enable the company to complete the initial rollout of the company’s roasting add-on appliance which fits on top of any bean-to-cup coffee machine. Griin’s appliance is powered by state-of-the-art proprietary volumetric roasting technology and orchestrated by deep-learning algorithms, ensuring a clean, rapid, and eco friendly solution. The compact desktop roaster is complemented by a supply of specialty coffee secured via griin’s direct sourcing operation.

“We are thrilled to partner with Closed Loop Partners for their resources, guidance, and many years in promoting the shift to a circular economy with their leading corporate partners including Starbucks, Nestlé and others. This funding round will allow us to release our first product to market in the enterprise high-tech market segment,” said griin CEO, Yuval Weisglass.

The office coffee market has seen incredible growth over the past five years. Vending Market Watch estimates a CAGR of 5.46% bringing the market to a whopping $19.31B by 2024. High-end bean-to-cup solutions comprise 50% of weight sales, while contributing to ~80% of the revenues. Griin is leading the on-demand roasting revolution alongside growing market demand for higher quality and sustainable office coffee solutions.

“Griin’s technology has immense potential for impact by vertically integrating the coffee roasting process at the point of consumption. Today, coffee supply chains are overly complex and inefficient, with a lot of landfill-bound packaging, culminating in high costs and a lower quality product for end-consumers,” says Ron Gonen, CEO of Closed Loop Partners. “Griin’s economy of green coffee beans increases efficiencies and streamlines processes, creating a higher quality, fresher product, while eliminating waste.”

Griin plans to continue to work on R&D projects and pilots with enterprise high-tech companies and will expand its market to additional territories, including US, Europe, and Australia.

About griin

griin is a deep-tech startup pioneering an innovative coffee roasting solution. griin’s proprietary, patent-pending technology uses volumetric heating to roast green coffee beans, enabling an optimal technique for non-industrial coffee roasting with the highest quality of fresh coffee for consumers.

At scale, this solution has the potential to decentralize the coffee supply chain, leading to a more balanced profit share for coffee producers and resellers, while dramatically improving various aspects of sustainability. The Israel based company was founded by three experienced entrepreneurs with the vision of disrupting the coffee market by providing an innovative roasting solution, focusing initially on the office/workplace segment. Learn more at https://www.griin.tech.

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity, project finance, and an innovation center focused on building the circular economy. Investors include many of the world’s largest consumer goods companies and family offices interested in investments that provide strong financial returns and tangible social impact. Learn more at www.closedlooppartners.com.

Dec 8 — Today, the NextGen Consortium, led by Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy, with Founding Partners Starbucks and McDonald’s, joined the Polypropylene Recycling Coalition as part of the Consortium’s multi-pronged approach to address single-use food packaging waste globally.

Building on the NextGen Consortium’s existing work to advance the design, commercialization and recovery of packaging alternatives — from new materials and recovery strategies to reusable packaging systems that keep materials in use for as long as possible — the Consortium will work with Coalition members to help increase recovery capacity for polypropylene in the United States. Polypropylene is typically found in everyday packaging such as the cup used for iced drinks on-the-go, yogurt cups and coffee pods, among other applications. However, in many markets, polypropylene is not accepted in residential recycling programs and ends up in landfills. According to The Recycling Partnership’s 2020 State of Curbside Recycling report, there may be as much as 1.6 billion pounds of polypropylene available per year from single-family homes that could be recycled into new products.

“Joining the Polypropylene Recycling Coalition was a natural continuation of the work we are doing across different packaging formats, systems and materials to improve the overall recovery of food packaging,” says Kate Daly, Managing Director of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners. “Alongside packaging design innovation, such as growing tech-enabled reusable packaging models, capturing existing plastic packaging waste is critical for building a more sustainable future. Unrecovered polypropylene in landfills represents an untapped and wasted resource that could be recirculated in the economy, bringing value to numerous stakeholders.”

The Polypropylene Recycling Coalition, established by The Recycling Partnership,  unites the industry around improving polypropylene recovery in the U.S. and further developing markets for high-quality recycled polypropylene. Today, the Coalition announced nearly $2 million in grant dollars to upgrade and improve the sorting equipment at recycling facilities and support consumer education programs to advance polypropylene recycling. The Coalition’s investments will widen the total nationwide acceptance of polypropylene in curbside recycling programs to an additional four million people, resulting in the recovery of a larger supply of polypropylene that could be made into new products.

As the NextGen Consortium continues its work across the value chain – with brands, municipalities, material recovery facilities and manufacturers – to advance viable sustainable packaging solutions that can scale throughout the global supply chain and bring value to recovery systems, working with the Polypropylene Coalition will help further our collective impact at scale.

About NextGen Consortium

The NextGen Consortium is a multi-year, global consortium that addresses single-use food packaging waste globally by advancing the design, commercialization, and recovery of food packaging alternatives. The NextGen Consortium is managed by Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy. Starbucks and McDonald’s are the founding partners of the Consortium, The Coca-Cola Company, Yum! Brands, Nestlé, and Wendy’s are supporting partners. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is the advisory partner and IDEO is the innovation partner. Learn more at www.nextgenconsortium.com.

About The Recycling Partnership

The Recycling Partnership is a national nonprofit organization that leverages corporate partner funding to transform recycling for good in states, cities, and communities nationwide. As the leading organization in the country that engages the full recycling supply chain from the corporations that manufacture products and packaging to local governments charged with recycling to industry end markets, haulers, material recovery facilities, and converters, The Recycling Partnership positively impacts recycling at every step in the process. Since 2014, the nonprofit change agent diverted 230 million pounds of new recyclables from landfills, saved 465 million gallons of water, avoided more than 250,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases, and drove significant reductions in targeted contamination rates. Learn more at recyclingpartnership.org.

The three food scrap drop-off sites funded by Closed Loop Partners re-opened in October, and are already attracting over 1,000 regular weekly participants and collecting over 7,000 pounds of food scraps each week. Located at GrowNYC’s 79th Street, Abingdon Square and Tribeca Greenmarket farmers markets, these sites offer convenient composting opportunities to Manhattan residents, from downtown to the Upper West Side. Together, these sites collected over 33,000 pounds of food scraps in just one month, with greenhouse gas emission reductions equivalent to conserving 1,435 gallons of gasoline (EPA WARM). As the holidays approach, typically bringing with them substantially higher rates of at-home cooking and associated food scraps, GrowNYC aims to secure additional funding that will allow them to resume operations across all 76 of their original food scrap drop-off sites, helping make composting accessible to all New Yorkers.

“By collecting food scraps from across the city and diverting them from landfills that are costly to taxpayers, we can realize remarkable economic and environmental benefits,” says Ron Gonen, CEO of Closed Loop Partners. “As the city continues to build circularity into their systems, GrowNYC plays a critical role in recapturing valuable materials like food scraps, and we’re proud to partner with them.”

GrowNYC is one of the most established environmental organizations in New York City, engaging over three million New Yorkers every year in environmental programs that improve the city’s quality of life. Supported by recently restored funding from Speaker Corey Johnson and the New York City Council, New York City Sanitation Department (DSNY), Closed Loop Partners and City Council Member Keith Powers, the organization recently reopened 16 of their 76 food scrap drop-off sites across Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens––showcasing public and private sector collaboration toward a more circular economy. All food scraps collected by GrowNYC are composted locally, in partnership with NYC Compost Project host sites and other community partners, including Big Reuse in Brooklyn and Queens, Earth Matter on Governors Island, the Lower East Side Ecology Center in Manhattan and Queens Botanical Garden.

“We are immensely grateful to Closed Loop Partners for their generous support, allowing us to bring back more food scrap collection sites in NYC, following COVID-related budget cuts earlier this year that brought our compost program to a standstill,” said GrowNYC President and CEO, Marcel Van Ooyen. “At GrowNYC, we work to make living an environmentally conscious lifestyle in the City second nature––something that, particularly right now, would not be possible for many New Yorkers, without help from partners like Closed Loop Partners, as well as the leadership of Speaker Corey Johnson and the City Council.”

In New York City alone, over 30% of the residential waste stream is made up of compostable organic waste, including food scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste, which too often end up rotting in landfills, emitting greenhouse gases and contributing to climate change. On a macro level, roughly one third of the food produced for human consumption every year––approximately 1.3 billion tons––gets lost or wasted, costing industrialized countries roughly $680 billion in economic value. Thus, it’s critical that we recapture the value of food scraps, bringing value to communities, the planet and business. Especially at this critical moment, as we face the impacts of climate change in addition to the effects of a global pandemic, it is of the utmost importance that we come together to support invaluable services––especially those that build more resilient supply chains and communities.

For more information on GrowNYC’s compost collection sites, the types of materials you can drop off and ways you can support the organization, visit GrowNYC.org.

For information on food scrap drop-off locations citywide, visit nyc.gov/dropfoodscraps.

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and project finance, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy.

The firm has built an ecosystem that connects entrepreneurs, industry experts, global consumer goods companies, retailers, financial institutions and municipalities. Their investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and diversion of materials from disposal.

About GrowNYC

GrowNYC was originally created in 1970 as the Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC). Born out of the spirit of the first Earth Day, CENYC was initially a policy-based organization, writing comprehensive reports about quality of life issues like air quality, traffic and noise. New York City has changed a lot since then and so has the organization. As the largest and most established environmental organization in NYC, GrowNYC is proud to have played a pivotal role in helping New York City transform over the past five decades. Today, three million New Yorkers each year participate in GrowNYC programs.

Tuesday, November 17 (New York) — Today, Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy released their U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map, as part of their broader Advancing Circular Systems for Plastics and Packaging Initiative. The comprehensive visual tool brings to light the diversity of plastic waste and the volumes and flows by country and state, highlighting critical opportunities to recapture valuable plastics and re-incorporate them into manufacturing supply chains.

The analysis shows that the U.S. and Canada are sending 11.5 million metric tons of plastic packaging to landfill every year, with the recycling system currently only capturing 18% of packaging.  This comes at a time when demand for recycled content is growing rapidly, with over 250 brands and retailers in the U.S. publicly committing to increase their use of recycled content in products and packaging. Yet, the supply of recycled content to meet this fast-growing demand is missing. Closed Loop Partners found that the current supply of recycled plastics meets just 6% of demand for the most common plastics in the U.S. and Canada.

Enhancing the transparency of supply chains and better measuring and understanding the current flow of materials are essential first steps to improve plastics recovery. Closed Loop Partners published the U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map to identify the magnitude of the plastics waste challenge, the key infrastructure gaps and the opportunity areas. By increasing visibility across the plastics value chain, we can drive collaboration among diverse stakeholders––from policymakers and brands, to plastics manufacturers and materials recovery facilities. 

The analysis also highlights the diverse formats, applications and end-of-life markets for plastics, demonstrating the need for multiple solutions to stem plastic waste. Mechanical recycling in the U.S. and Canada recaptures the value of 2,557 million metric tons of plastic packaging after final use per year, primarily from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles kept in circulation. But, mechanical recycling is not an end of life solution for many other forms of plastic waste, like apparel, construction plastics, automotive applications and more, where there may be an opportunity for advanced recycling to fill this gap and solve for these hardest-to-recycle plastic-based products. However, these solutions still cannot serve all materials and markets perfectly or in perpetuity, and we must also deploy and scale reuse and rental systems, among others, to help extend the life of materials and reduce the overall volume of virgin plastic entering the market. Current strategies to address plastic waste are complementary, but taken alone they will be ineffective at producing a circular system for all plastics. Without a multi-pronged approach, plastic waste in all forms, from various industries, will continue to grow. 

“To efficiently and effectively tackle all plastic waste, we must first understand the volume and types of plastic flowing through our economy,” says Kate Daly, Managing Director of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners. “Using plastic packaging as a starting point, this analysis helps investors, brands, entrepreneurs and policymakers understand the diversity of plastic waste in our system and make data-driven decisions. This tool helps galvanize stakeholders to accelerate our collective journey toward a circular economy for plastics through multiple plastic-waste mitigation strategies, and we call upon additional industries to share their data on plastic waste streams to shed light on the additional opportunities.” 

Closed Loop Partners embarked on this study to map the volume of plastic packaging and containers specifically, but this is far from the only plastics that must be solved for. The plastics growing in landfill are diverse, including plastics from car parts, healthcare and textiles. The firm is working with organizations across the U.S. and Canada to leverage additional data on other plastic materials and add to this dataset to drive greater transparency and better understanding of all types of plastic waste flowing through current systems. The firm calls upon industry to look beyond packaging and collect data on all plastic waste to create a circular future.

“Foundational to effective action and investment is an informed understanding of where, how much and what quality of plastic waste is being generated in the United States and Canada,” says Anne Johnson, Principal and Vice President of Global Corporate Sustainability for Resource Recycling Systems (RRS). “Packaging waste only scratches the surface of the plastic waste problem. Polyester textiles contribute to 13.4 billion pounds of landfill waste in the U.S., and require both traditional and new advanced recycling platforms to recapture their value after use. This data visualization tool can be built upon to shine a light on the full spectrum of plastic waste in existence today, providing much-needed transparency and collectively advancing a circular economy for plastics.”

“We are excited to see this U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map from Closed Loop Partners,” says Peylina Chu, Executive Director for the Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council. “As the healthcare industry looks for circular solutions for the millions of tons of clean healthcare plastic, this map helps set a precedent for collaborative efforts along the plastic value chain that can help efficiently identify and leverage synergies between healthcare plastics and other valuable scrap plastic streams as we all add data and share insights on this global waste challenge.” 

A more robust understanding of the status quo, strengthened by investments and policies that fill opportunity gaps highlighted by the current waste flow, will increase capacity to process more used material across the country, deliver feedstock for both mechanical and advanced recycling, create demand pull, generate additional jobs, mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and advance the transition to a circular economy. 

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and project finance, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy. The firm has built an ecosystem that connects entrepreneurs, industry experts, global consumer goods companies, retailers, financial institutions and municipalities. Investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and landfill diversion. Learn more here. 

About Advancing Circular Systems for Plastics and Packaging Initiative

At Closed Loop Partners, we envision a waste-free future for plastics. We launched our Advancing Circular System for Plastics and Packaging Initiative understanding that there is no silver bullet solution to solve complex global waste challenges. Ending plastics waste will require a combination of approaches such as design innovation, reuse and advanced recycling to accelerate the transition to a circular economy for plastics. Our Center for the Circular Economy partnered with Target Corporation, Bank of America, Colgate-Palmolive, 3M, The American Chemistry Council and Sealed Air to produce the U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map. Our technical partners on this project included Resource Recycling Systems and The Recycling Partnership. Learn more about our investments, collaboration and research here.

Closed Loop Partners’ $2.6 million loan adds to a previously-awarded $390,000 grant by The Recycling Partnership to the city, which was provided by the American Beverage Association via its “Every Bottle Back” initiative. In total, the $4.5 million project comes at a key moment for strengthening recycling infrastructure across the United States, particularly in the Southwest, highlighting the importance of collaboration between the public and private sectors to catalyze capital and galvanize stakeholders that can scale impact.

Closed Loop Partners provided the funding through its project finance arm, the Closed Loop Infrastructure Fund. Launched in 2014 in partnership with 12 of the world’s largest consumer goods and retailers, the fund finances recycling infrastructure and innovations across the U.S. to advance the circular economy. With growing pressures from climate change, the need to build resilient local supply chains and mitigate environmental damages has come to the fore. The circular economy provides tangible solutions––lowering greenhouse gas emissions and redirecting waste from landfill, while generating significant economic benefits by keeping valuable materials in circulation. To fully transition to circular material flows, increasing access to strong and stable recycling infrastructure is essential. 

Over the next 10 years, the initiative is projected to collect 124 million pounds of recycled material, including over 5 million pounds of new polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and 2 million pounds of new aluminum, creating strong feedstocks for eventual use in various manufacturing streams. The city will send the collected material to American Waste Control, an advanced Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in Tulsa for processing. By ensuring that the pipeline of collected materials will be met by demand, the economic viability and long-term circular flow of resources is secured.

“We are thrilled to help bring this initiative to fruition for the City of Broken Arrow,” says Bridget Croke, Managing Director at Closed Loop Partners. “Opening access to and advancing recycling systems in Oklahoma is critical to building local and regional circular systems in the Southwest, and will have significant ripple effects to advancing the circular economy across the United States.”

“We are excited to begin curbside recycling in the City of Broken Arrow. We have already had great participation from our citizens, who are interested in the positive economic and environmental impact recycling will have on our city. The Broken Arrow Municipal Authority looks forward to this initiative to make our city more sustainable,” says Mayor Craig Thurmond on behalf of the Broken Arrow Municipal Authority.

The project officially launches in the fall of 2020, and marks the beginning of a cart-based recycling system for the City of Broken Arrow. For more information on this project, visit RecycleBA.com.

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is a New York based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and project finance, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy.

The firm has built an ecosystem that connects entrepreneurs, industry experts, global consumer goods companies, retailers, financial institutions and municipalities. Their investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and diversion of materials from disposal.

About the City of Broken Arrow

Located in northeast Oklahoma, Broken Arrow is the fourth largest city in the State of Oklahoma, with an estimated population of over 113,000 people spread out over 61 square miles. Broken Arrow is also home to the third largest manufacturing hub in the state, with many employees working in the energy sector. Residents in Broken Arrow enjoy a high quality of life, characterized by low crime, high performing schools, affordable housing and easy access to many parks and recreational facilities. The City of Broken Arrow sets the standard by providing the best municipal programs and services.

October 15  – On August 25, 2020, Adam Vehik was elected by the Balcones Resources’ Board of Directors to assume the responsibilities of President of the Corporation. Vehik will assume his post as President immediately, leading the continued growth of the company following its acquisition of Sarasota-based, AI-powered recycling facility, Single Stream Recyclers (SSR).

Prior to his 10-year tenure as Chief Financial Officer of Balcones Resources, Vehik had an extensive career in finance, law, marketing, and strategy & technology commercialization, spending four years in private equity and working in the White House during the Clinton Administration. He also garnered international experience, working in Johannesburg, South Africa and Granada, Nicaragua, and conducting expeditions in the Arctic Circle and Australian Outback, studying applications of closed loop ecosystems across a variety of contexts. For the last five years, he has served as a Board Member for Hill Country Conservancy, the most influential land trust in Central Texas. Vehik received his JD and MBA from the University of Arkansas, received his undergraduate degree in Economics from Vanderbilt University, and studied International Economics in Perth, Australia and International Law in Prague, Czech Republic.

Backed by leading circular economy investment firm Closed Loop Partners, Balcones Resources is an Austin-based environmental services company whose primary business is related to the collection, processing and selling of recyclable materials in the commercial and residential sectors of our economy. Today, Balcones processes and sells more than 250,000 tons of recyclables per year in Austin, Dallas, Little Rock, and Sarasota. The company’s recent acquisition of Single Stream Recyclers will help support its continued growth and the scaling of a circular economy in the South.

Disclaimer:

This publication is for informational purposes only, and nothing contained herein constitutes an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any interest in any investment vehicle managed by Closed Loop Capital Management or any company in which Closed Loop Capital Management or its affiliates have invested. An offer or solicitation will be made only through a final private placement memorandum, subscription agreement and other related documents with respect to a particular investment opportunity and will be subject to the terms and conditions contained in such documents, including the qualifications necessary to become an investor. Closed Loop Capital Management does not utilize its website to provide investment or other advice, and nothing contained herein constitutes a comprehensive or complete statement of the matters discussed or the law relating thereto. Information provided reflects Closed Loop Capital Management’s views as of a particular time and are subject to change without notice. You should obtain relevant and specific professional advice before making any investment decision. Certain information on this Website may contain forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks and uncertainties and speak only as of the date on which they are made. The words “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “optimistic”, “intend”, “aim”, “will” or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Closed Loop Capital Management undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. Past performance is not indicative of future results; no representation is being made that any investment or transaction will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those achieved in the past, or that significant losses will be avoided.

New York (Oct. 9, 2020) — Today, Hy-Vee Inc. joined the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag as a Supporting Partner, alongside Founding Partners CVS Health, Target and Walmart, and joined by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Kroger and Walgreens. Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy launched the Consortium and its Beyond the Bag Initiative earlier this year with the aim of identifying, testing and implementing viable design solutions and models that more sustainably serve the purpose of the current retail bag.

Hy-Vee, Inc. is an employee-owned supermarket chain operating more than 275 retail stores across eight Midwestern states. “The opportunity to join the Beyond the Bag Initiative and address the shared challenges presented by single-use plastics with some of the largest and most influential retailers in our country is crucial  as we remain committed to reducing our environmental impact,” said Jay Marshall, Hy-Vee’s Vice Chairman and President of Hy-Vee’s Supply Chain and Subsidiaries. “Through this collaboration, we can truly move the needle on a global waste issue and bring to life some much-needed solutions. We look forward to contributing our knowledge and insights and collectively collaborating with other Consortium Partners to pave the way for a more sustainable future.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Hy-Vee to the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag. The collaborative power of our Consortium enables us to have impact at scale and accelerate the pace of innovation to find alternatives to the current retail bag,” says Kate Daly, Managing Director of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners. “We continue to invite other retailers to join us and send a unified signal for transformational change to address this long-standing environmental challenge.”

The Kroger Co. is the Grocery Sector Lead Partner of the Consortium, directing priorities and activities for the initiative within the specific sector. “Our commitment to phase out single-use plastic bags across our enterprise is a critical part of our Zero Hunger | Zero Waste social impact plan,” said Lisa Zwack, Kroger’s Head of Sustainability. “We’re thrilled to welcome Hy-Vee to the Consortium and we encourage other retailers to join our search for innovative, sustainable solutions to the traditional single-use plastic bag.”

Single-use plastic bags are among the top 10 items found on beaches and waterways, and it’s estimated that we use 100 billion plastic bags per year in the U.S., contributing to a global waste challenge. The short use (12 minutes, on average) and long lifespan of the plastic bag have led to rising concerns. This is a challenge that is top-of-mind for communities and consumers who are concerned about the impact of single-use plastics on our environment and for brands who are seeking more sustainable solutions. Current alternatives can be costly and inconvenient, often trading one environmental issue for another. The retail bag needs reinventing.

In August, the Consortium launched a global innovation challenge to source solutions to replace the current plastic bag – including tech-enabled reuse models, new materials, and software and hardware innovations. The Challenge closed last week with more than 450 submissions. Consortium Partners, including retailers and Environmental Advisory Partners, alongside third-party experts will carefully review and select the Shortlist and Winners. All submissions are viewed through the lenses of sustainability, accessibility, customer behavior and alignment with reuse and recovery infrastructure. Winning concepts are eligible to receive a portion of $1 million in funding, participate in a Circular Accelerator to receive further assistance in scaling, and access testing and potential piloting opportunities.

The initiative not only brings together major retailers as Consortium Partners, but also engages with stakeholders across the bag value chain, including suppliers, materials recovery facilities, municipalities, advocacy groups and others to support this collaborative approach designed to promote viable market solutions that can scale, and bring value to retailers, customers and end markets. The Consortium takes a holistic three-year approach to identify and scale affordable, accessible and less wasteful solutions. It will aim to test and launch near term solutions early on in the Initiative, while also continuing to refine longer term solutions to ensure that the industry is designing both for today and tomorrow’s needs. The initiative spans multiple complementary workstreams, spurring innovation, advancing materials recovery through infrastructure investments, identifying best practices for policy and engaging consumers.

About Hy-Vee

Hy-Vee, Inc. is an employee-owned corporation operating more than 275 retail stores across eight Midwestern states with sales of $10 billion annually. The supermarket chain is synonymous with quality, variety, convenience, healthy lifestyles, culinary expertise and superior customer service. Hy-Vee ranks in the Top 10 Most Trusted Brands and has been named one of America’s Top 5 favorite grocery stores. The company’s more than 85,000 employees provide “A Helpful Smile in Every Aisle” to customers every day. For additional information, visit www.hy-vee.com.

About the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners

The Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners convenes competitors to solve material challenges and advance the circular economy. Its first initiative, the NextGen Consortium, united leading food and beverage companies to identify and commercialize a widely recyclable, compostable and/or reusable cup. Twelve winning cup solutions were selected and the Consortium is supporting the testing and piloting of these new solutions to accelerate their path to scale. Now, in partnership with leading retailers in the United States, the focus is on the single-use plastic retail bag, a challenge and opportunity that is top-of-mind for communities and consumers concerned about the impact of single-use plastics on our environment. Learn more about the Center’s work here.

About the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag

The Beyond the Bag Initiative, launched by the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag, aims to identify, pilot and implement viable design solutions and models that more sustainably serve the purpose of the current retail bag. Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy launched the initiative with Founding Partners CVS Health, Target and Walmart. Kroger joined as Grocery Sector Lead Partner, DICK’S Sporting Goods as Sports & Outdoors Sector Lead Partner and Hy-Vee and Walgreens as Supporting Partners, alongside Conservation International and Ocean Conservancy as Environmental Advisory Partners. OpenIDEO is the Consortium’s Innovation Partner.