Central Valley farmers can now sign up to get rid of their old plastic tubing and film for free. The plastic will be used to make reusable grocery bags.
The company Encore Recycling has already contracted with the Yolo County Landfill to collect irrigation tubing called drip tape, and film used by strawberry growers.
Encore Recycling says farmers won’t have to pay dump fees if they sign up to take their old plastics to drop off locations in Yolo County or in Salinas.
“The process is collection, sorting, cleaning, and then the final step is a pelletization process," says company CEO Peter Grande. "The final product in Salinas today is a raw material that’s in the form of a pellet.”
The pellets will be taken to the company’s southern California facility and turned into bags. The company plans to install the machinery needed to turn the pellets into bags at the Salinas plant. The bags are called, "Smarter Bags."
Grande says the company hopes to recycle 20-million-pounds of plastic per year when it opens its recycling facility in October and hopes to double its capacity within twelve months.
Encore Recycling estimates there are 100-million pounds of agricultural plastic dumped into landfills every year.
Yolo County Central Landfill
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