Recovered Glass: United States

Report Overview

This report forecasts to 2028 US recovery of post-consumer glass from the US municipal solid waste (MSW) stream in short tons. For comparison, this report also forecasts to 2028 the total generation of post-consumer glass in the MSW stream. Total post-consumer glass recovery and generation are segmented by source product in terms of: beer and soft drink bottles, wine and liquor bottles, other bottles and jars, and durable goods (generation only).

To illustrate historical trends total glass recovery, generation, and the various segments are provided in annual series from 2013 to 2023.

Pre-consumer glass (e.g., finished glass that breaks at a bottling or distribution facility) is excluded. The annual volume of glass recovered in the US from durable goods (e.g., appliances, furniture, and electronics) is negligible, and is therefore not included in total recovered glass.

Throughout this report, measures in tons refer to short tons.

Generation refers to the weight of materials and products as they enter the waste management system from residential, commercial and institutional sources and before recycling, composting, combustion or landfilling take place. Pre-consumer (industrial) scrap is not included in the generation estimate. Source reduction activities, such as backyard composting, take place ahead of generation.

Recycling is defined as the recovery of useful materials, such as paper, glass, plastic and metals, from the MSW stream, along with the transformation of the materials, to make new products to reduce the amount of virgin raw materials needed to meet consumer demands.

Key macroeconomic indicators are also provided with quantified trends. Other various topics, including profiles of pertinent leading companies, are covered in this report. A full outline of report items by page is available in the Table of Contents.

Related NAICS Codes

Table of Contents

HIGHLIGHTS

• Historical Trends
• Key Economic Indicators
• Recycling Programs & Initiatives
• Glass Production & Cullet Processing
• Off-Premise Beverage Spending

• Beer & Soft Drink Bottles
• Wine & Liquor Bottles
• Other Bottles & Jars

• Industry Characteristics
• Market Leaders

• Scope
• Sources
• Industry Codes
• Freedonia Methodology
• Resources

• Figure 1 | Key Trends in US MSW Glass Recovery, 2023 - 2028
• Figure 2 | US MSW Glass Recovery Trends, 2013 - 2023
• Table 1 | Key Indicators for US Glass Recovery Demand; 2013, 2018, 2023, 2028 (2017US$ bil)
• Figure 3 | US Off-Premise Beverage Real PCE Trends, 2013 - 2023
• Table 2 | US Off-Premise Beverage Real PCE, 2013 - 2023 (2017US$ bil)
• Figure 4 | US MSW Glass Recovery by Source, 2013 - 2028 (mil tons)
• Table 3 | US MSW Historical Glass Recovery by Source, 2013 - 2023 (000 tons)
• Table 4 | US MSW Forecast Glass Recovery by Source, 2023 - 2028 (000 tons)
• Figure 5 | US MSW Glass Generation by Source, 2013 - 2028 (mil tons)
• Table 5 | US MSW Historical Glass Generation by Source, 2013 - 2023 (000 tons)
• Table 6 | US MSW Forecast Glass Generation by Source, 2023 - 2028 (000 tons)
• Figure 6 | US MSW Glass Recovery Rate by Source, 2013 - 2028 (%)
• Table 7 | US MSW Historical Glass Recovery Rate by Source, 2013 - 2023 (%)
• Table 8 | US MSW Forcast Glass Recovery Rate by Source, 2023 - 2028 (%)
• Figure 7 | US MSW Beer & Soft Drink Bottles Recovery w/ Packaged Beverage Production, 2013 - 2028
• Figure 8 | US Survey: Re-Used or Recycled in the Last 30 Days: Glass Bottles, 2013 - 2023 (% of households)
• Figure 9 | US MSW Glass Recovery by Source, 2013 - 2028 (%)
• Table 9 | NAICS & SIC Codes Related to Glass Recovery