BiblioFlex initiative targets flexible plastic mapping to enhance Canada’s recycling landscape

CANADA – Canada’s Circular Plastics Taskforce (CPT), in partnership with Éco Entreprises Québec and Recycle BC, has unveiled BiblioFlex, a nationwide program dedicated to dissecting flexible plastic packaging and its recycling pathways. 

Set to launch testing by late 2025, the project will deliver initial results in summer 2026, providing critical data on how these materials circulate through the market.

Flexible plastics, which account for about half of all plastic packaging produced in Canada, often pose challenges in sorting and processing due to their varied compositions. 

BiblioFlex addresses this by integrating lab-based analysis with market segmentation to pinpoint exact material makeup. 

This approach will pair scientific testing with input from producers and recyclers, guiding adjustments in packaging design and optimizing recovery methods. 

The initiative operates via two hubs, one in Quebec and another in British Columbia, drawing expertise from specialists nationwide. 

Further specifics on hub operations and collaborators will emerge early next year.

Marie-Anne Champoux-Guimond, co-chair of CPT’s board, expressed enthusiasm for the launch. 

She noted that the effort advances the group’s goal of promoting cooperation in handling post-consumer plastics. 

Champoux-Guimond added that it serves as a key step in broadening CPT’s reach, deepening knowledge of a major packaging category.

The CPT works to cultivate a circular economy for plastics, linking recycled resin demands with upstream collection and sorting. 

Its members include Cascades, the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada, Circular Materials, Danone Canada, Keurig Dr Pepper Canada, ProAmpac, and Recycle BC. 

Éco Entreprises Québec, a non-profit managing Quebec’s curbside recycling for containers and paper products, plays a central role. 

Meanwhile, Recycle BC oversees British Columbia’s residential recycling under an extended producer responsibility framework.

Normand Gadoury, vice-president of innovation and infrastructure at Éco Entreprises Québec, highlighted the timing. 

He explained that as extended producer responsibility expands countrywide, more flexible plastics enter collection streams, making detailed composition analysis essential.

In a parallel development, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation reported in October 2025 that U.S. states like California have invested US$50 million in flexible film sorting technologies, yielding a 15% increase in recovery rates for multi-layer pouches since 2024. 

Such advancements suggest BiblioFlex could similarly elevate Canada’s infrastructure, potentially reducing landfill diversion by 20% for these materials within five years.

By fostering data-driven changes, BiblioFlex equips stakeholders to tackle flexible plastics more effectively, supporting broader goals of waste minimization and resource recovery across the nation.

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