What’s Happening
As California prepares for Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), more film and flexible packaging is expected to move through the recycling system. Processing that material requires facilities with the expertise and capacity to recover it efficiently.
Through The Recycling Partnership’s CalFFlex initiative, in partnership with the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, Valemi, Inc. was awarded a grant in 2025 to expand the facility’s film and flexible packaging processing capacity by 200%. The investment will enable Valemi to process substantially more recovered material as additional supply enters the recycling system.
Why It Matters
Valemi plays an important role in California’s recycling infrastructure by processing plastics from materials recovery facilities, retailers, commercial generators, and other sources into market-ready feedstock.
The expanded capacity will enable the facility to process more residential film and flexible packaging while improving the quality of material supplied to manufacturers. Recovered material is already being converted into products such as trash bags, pellets, composite lumber, and other durable goods.
A Long-Term Investment Strategy
This investment builds on several years of collaboration between The Partnership and Valemi. Earlier grants expanded the facility’s secondary sortation capabilities for film and flexible packaging while also strengthening processing for PET and other plastic materials.
Each investment addressed a different need, but together they have worked to expand Valemi’s role as a processor in California’s evolving recycling system.
The latest investment continues that progression, positioning the facility to manage growing volumes of film and flexible packaging as California prepares for EPR implementation.
Looking Ahead
The Valemi project is part of a broader effort to prepare California’s recycling system for the future. By expanding processing capacity ahead of EPR implementation, The Partnership is helping ensure more recovered material can move through the recycling supply chain and back into manufacturing.