P&G, General Mills Step Up to Make Flexible Film Recycling Economically Viable

While near-term strategies like USFFI and CalFFlex focus on bridging economic gaps, both Keenan and Medellin also described how technology and material innovation will play central roles in scaling circularity.

Medellin pointed to P&G’s new Flexloop system, developed in partnership with recycling equipment manufacturer Lindner. The process uses a solvent-based mechanical extraction technique that removes odors, adhesives, inks, and other impurities from post-consumer resin, producing higher-quality recycled polymers suitable for reuse, even in sensitive applications like cosmetics or personal care packaging.

P&G introduced the system publicly last month at the K (plastics industry) trade fair and expo, and stakeholders say it offers an alternative to the chemical (non-mechanical) recycling approaches that have faced challenges in scalability and cost. 

Medellin said the goal of Flexloop is to keep material in mechanical recycling systems while improving the quality of recycled resin so it meets brand standards.

Medellin’s approach highlights how non-food brands can leverage new purification technologies to push recycled content into higher-value uses. But for food producers, the path is narrower, and much more tightly bound by regulation.

Food-contact constraints shape General Mills’ path

The two CPG panelists represented a distinction between food and non-food packaging needs. The moderator David Love noted that mechanical recycling “doesn’t really work for food products,” while it may be suitable for many non-food applications. It's a challenge that lands squarely on food brands’ laps. 

Keenan’s response set General Mills’ course: by 2030, the company is designing for recyclability with mechanical systems in mind. “We’re 2030 to be recyclable… we think the predominant form of recycling by 2030 is going to be mechanical… our strategy… is designed for polyethylene,” she said, adding that while most plastics will need mechanical pathways, “a small subset likely needs to go through some type of molecular recycling.” 

That emphasis translates into prioritizing PE where recovery is building momentum. “If we were to ask ourselves, ‘okay, where do we prioritize spending our dollars on building infrastructure?' The answer is polyethylene, period,” Keenan said, framing PE as the most practical near-term route to show progress while innovation continues for other materials. He stressed that this PE focus would be to the long-term exclusion of other materials, polypropylene for instance. he just wants to prioritize and master PE first since the application swath is so much wider. 

By contrast, P&G’s portfolio is largely non-food contact, which gives Medellin wider latitude on materials and applications. “I don’t do food or hot fill for example… PE should satisfy a hundred percent of my flexible packaging needs,” he said — a reminder that food-grade constraints force different timelines and tactics on brands like General Mills.

As for other technologies that might make an impact, Keenan also suggested that the sorting technologies used in advanced recycling facilities—such as high-precision optical and AI-based systems—could be adapted for traditional MRFs. 

Keenan suggested that using the same high-precision sortation technologies found in advanced recycling, so as to accurately sort polyolefins and fully remove paper, PET, and other contaminants, could improve MRF film quality and consistency.

Both panelists agreed that design for recyclability and use of PCR have to accelerate. Medellin urged converters to be proactive about incorporating PCR into flexible packaging rather than waiting for mandates.

Keenan concurred, emphasizing that the industry’s path forward lies not in abandoning flexible packaging but in making it truly recoverable. 

Keenan said flexible packaging remains a highly efficient and valuable format, but the challenge lies in creating systems that can recover it effectively.

Collaboration across the value chain

Both CPG leaders described a clear vision for the next phase of flexible packaging’s evolution: one in which brands, converters, and recyclers work as a single ecosystem to build the infrastructure and end markets needed for circularity.

Keenan emphasized that brand owners can’t go it alone. Keenan said that if the economics of collection and processing can be made to work, film recovery can scale rapidly across markets.

“But it’s not something brands can do alone," he added. "We’ll need our converter partners to design materials that can flow through these systems—mono-material, recyclable, and made with PCR.”

He also urged suppliers to take initiative rather than wait for specific requests. “Don’t wait for me to ask you to put PCR in your flexible film,” Keenan said. “Start doing it.” The message for converters was clear: brands are setting aggressive circularity targets, and suppliers who innovate early will be best positioned to grow with them.

Medellin shared a similar sentiment about the evolving brand–supplier dynamic. “You are an extension of our manufacturing facility,” he told the converter-heavy audience. “You bring innovation to us, we co-develop things together.” That cooperative mindset, he said, is what will make flexible packaging viable under EPR and beyond.

As both panelists made clear, flexible packaging’s future will depend as much on collaboration as on chemistry. The challenge isn’t only about new materials or new recovery systems—it’s about rethinking how the entire packaging value chain works together to make circularity possible.

Quick Hits from the CPG Panel

1. Inks, adhesives, and coatings determine recyclability.
Pat Keenan pointed out that recyclability often fails not because of the base film, but because of what’s added to it. “We’ve got to solve for inks, coatings, adhesives, and tie layers,” he said. “If you just have a polyethylene film and you add an incompatible ink or adhesive, you’ve lost your recyclability right there.”

2. PE is the clear near-term priority.
“Where do we prioritize spending our dollars on building infrastructure? It’s polyethylene, period,” Keenan said, underscoring the industry’s consensus that PE films will be the dominant flexible substrate for recycling investments through 2030.

3. Flexibility on materials gives P&G an edge.
Teo Medellin pointed out that P&G doesn’t face food-contact restrictions. “I don’t do food or hot fill for example… PE should satisfy a hundred percent of my flexible packaging needs,” he said — meaning P&G can move faster on mechanical and solvent-based recycling technologies.

4. Flexloop could open new markets.
P&G’s new Flexloop process with Lindner, a solvent-based mechanical extraction system, removes odors, adhesives, and inks from post-consumer resin, potentially enabling PCR to be used in sensitive applications like cosmetics or personal care.

5. Infrastructure subsidies are working models.
Through USFFI and CalFFlex, both brands are helping to subsidize flexible film bales at what Keenan estimates to be roughly $1 per pound, proving that market pull can be engineered when economics are aligned.

6. Chemical recycling will play a role, but not for most materials.
Keenan said only “a small subset” of plastics will require molecular recycling; the majority will need to flow through mechanical systems. That focus is shaping design-for-recyclability work at General Mills.

7. Collaboration isn’t optional.
Both panelists stressed that brands, converters, and recyclers must work together. “Converters are the ones who can tell us what’s possible,” Medellin said. Keenan agreed, calling converter engagement “critical to making flexible packaging truly recyclable.”