March 16, 2025 • 23 mins
https://www.scrappzero.com/
Evan Gwynne Davies <evan@scrapprecycling.com>
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Cory Connors (00:00):
Welcome to Sustainable Packaging
(00:02):
with Cory Connors
Brodie (00:03):
and Brodie Vander Dussen .
Cory Connors (00:05):
We're super friend Evan Gwyn Davies, the
co founder and CEO of Scrapp.
And if you haven't heardof Scrap, listen up because
it's a really important andvaluable Story and business
that has a lot to offer somany of us in this industry.
(00:27):
I'm amazed at what they'veaccomplished in a short time.
and I'm excited about whatthey'll do in the future.
And Ithink if you haven't heard of
Scrap, I think that's, maybeyou're a first time listener of
Corey and I, before we startedrolling, we were talking a
little bit about how easy it isfor us to talk about scrap, not
only because they're friends ofours and that we really enjoy
(00:47):
working with them, but whatthey're doing and the value
that they bring to not onlyjust the space and industry
itself, but also the customersthat they work with, people
like us, just the statistics andthe information that they alone
really can have and can provide.
It's easy to talk about.
We bring them up a lot.
So, if you haven't heard ofthem, I'm assuming you're
(01:08):
a first time listener.
And so I'm going to saywelcome to, sustainable
packaging podcast.
but also welcome Evan.
Evan Gwynn Davies (01:16):
Thank you both for having me.
Good to see you again.
And thank you so muchfor the kind words.
Really appreciate it.
Brodie Vander Dussen (01:22):
Evan for our first time listener,
obviously, you want toshare a little bit about
yourself and scrap andwhat you guys are up to.
Evan Gwynn Davies (01:30):
Absolutely.
So hi folks.
My name's evan.
I'm the co founder and ceoof Scrapp We're a waste data
tracking platform that enablesbusinesses, brands, retailers to
help track their waste footprintover global markets so they
can communicate the correctdisposal of their products.
We originally started offas a university dorm room
project, just over, well,just over five years ago
(01:51):
now, originally, and we had abarcode scanning app where you
could scan the barcode of aproduct anywhere in the world
and learn how to recycle it.
We were frustrated.
At seeing plastic bags putin the recycling bin that we
knew that shouldn't be there.
So we created a solutionto provide at point of
disposal information.
And then when we started todig further into it, we became
a little bit more than justa free app for consumers.
(02:12):
We started to learn there'sa real opportunity with data
and a lack of it that couldreally help propel our movement
towards a circular economy.
So that's now what we do tohelp businesses essentially
reduce their waste footprintby optimizing for end markets.
Cory Connors (02:25):
Incredible.
And, we should also mention ourvery good friend, Mikey Pachuto.
He's been on the show before,and, you two and your team
there at Scrap have accomplishedso much in just a short time.
it's really impressive.
So you mentioned that youstarted out as a project, at,
in university in America, right?
(02:46):
Or, yeah, which is so cool.
And you started out as an app,which is the, where the name
came from scrap, which I thinkis so appropriate, really clever
name, but you've evolved intoso much more, I wanted to talk
to you about and maybe focuson maybe one project, like with
one of your partners that wouldexplain to our listener what
(03:10):
scrap does and can do for them.
Evan Gwynn Davies (03:13):
So a recent project that we've been working
on, I won't name them byname, but to give you an idea,
they're in the food industry.
they produce millions andmillions of pounds of,
food for the fish markets.
I don't want to say toomuch to give it away, but
they, That huge supplierof sushi, in the U S.
(03:34):
And so what we did is weusing our data system was
able to quantify the amountof material throughput that
they're generating into themarkets they distribute to
within the United States.
Really important informationto get organized,
especially for EPR.
So just by nature of workingwith us, they're already.
getting ahead of the EPRcompliance that's going to
be coming to states prettysoon, already in some, and
(03:58):
we were also able to lookat recommendations that we
could give them based onthe markets that they're
selling into to designfor this circular economy.
So whether Is it the rightoption to use a compostable
piece of packaging and wrappingit in a compostable wrap,
or is it better to have areusable HDPE container that
it's getting shipped in, thatwe can get certain number of
(04:21):
use cases out, and what doesthe impact of that look like?
We're essentially giving dataAnd organizing it and formatting
it to make better decisionsaround the sustainability of a
given product and supply chain.
We really try and target asmuch of the value chain as we
can upstream, because that'swhere we're finding we can have
the biggest impact downstream.
(04:43):
to contextualize it, I alwaysbring it back to the app when
we initially started, right?
Why is the only onuson us to put our waste
into the right bin?
Why not instead we look furtherupstream and go, hang on, if
we could design this productin a way that was optimized for
where it's being distributedto, surely that makes it a
much easier job for you andI to put it in the right
(05:05):
bin, and you don't hear thesehorrible statistics like 8
out of 10 of us recyclingcorrectly because we can't,
or we just don't know how.
so that's really whatwe've now molded ourselves
into, if you like.
Cory Connors (05:16):
Or it's not available.
50 million households in the U.
S., I think I learnedthat from, Recyclops, is,
don't even have curbsiderecycling available to them.
Exactly.
so they have to take that extraeffort, and people like us do
that, but, like you said, if,what if we design the product
so that it doesn't, It's easy torecycle or reuse or, or compost.
(05:38):
these, all of theseoptions are amazing.
And like you said,data, extended producer
responsibility.
These are the thingsthat people really need
to be aware of today.
Brodie Vander Dussen (05:47):
not only being aware of, but also I
think there is an underlyingdesire to do the right thing
or to make packaging moresustainable, but how we do that.
And what makes itsomething sustainable?
I think are questionsthat all of us have, even
no matter really wherewe are in the journey.
And so having the data, I thinkis something that's Vital to
(06:10):
being able to move forward.
So I think it's really coolthat you guys help that, is
it better to be compostable?
Is it better to be recyclable?
Because those are not thesame thing and they are
completely different packagingand really depend on what the
product is and the marketsand a thousand factors.
So the data is really important.
I think to be able to makethat decision or even have that
conversation to figure that out.
(06:32):
And I love thedownstream to upstream.
I think that's, it takes allof us to, The people who are
designing the packaging, thepeople that you're using the
packaging, the people who aredisposing, collecting, to really
make that circular economy.
So having everyone involvedsounds like you guys are have a
hand in everything, every stepof that process to, companies
(06:52):
that you guys are working with.
So you mentioned someonein the food industry.
Do you guys work withspecific industries, specific
spaces, or maybe even stepsin that circular economy
or kind of everything?
Evan Gwynn Davies (07:05):
Yeah, so we originally when we started to
understand where we were goingas a business, it really opened
our eyes because we figured ifyou produce waste, you could
be a Client of ours, right?
But that's a big ocean ofpotential clients, right?
And we really need to nichedown here because like
you said, it's different.
There's different requirementsfor different organizations that
(07:26):
you might just not align withsustainability wise, or they've
done everything they can.
And there's nothingelse that they can do.
So what we're findingwith the organizations
we're working with.
A lot of the companies that arein closed loop environments,
the ones that are like stadiums,events, venues, areas where
they have a good control ofthe inflows and outflows,
(07:48):
or we can give them data oncontrolling those inflows
and outflows better, iswhere we're getting a lot of
interest because that's wherewe know that the use case of
reuse can succeed really well.
When we work with, we areworking with medium sized
brands and retailers at themoment, we've also worked
with some of the biggest,one of the biggest beauty and
(08:09):
cosmetics brands in the world.
there's a case study comingout on it really soon
that we've done with Avon.
And we're finding that thedifference in the appetite for
sustainability is so different,even in the same industry,
it's very difficult for usto create that repeatable,
hey, here's your problem,this is how we can solve you.
We really have to comein hands on Get under
(08:30):
the skin of it and go.
Okay.
How can we work with you to geta solution that works for you?
Cause the famous thing,the famous saying is
sustainability, right?
Is it depends.
And so there's this onesize fits all really
becomes difficult to do.
And so the breadth of customerswe're working with, like I
said, from stadiums all theway up to beauty cosmetics
brands, if they're producingwaste, there is a interest
(08:52):
in them to track it, butwe're not really seeing any
consistency at the moment withthe ones that are prioritizing
the ones that are not.
Cory Connors (08:58):
You mentioned a report coming out.
I think this is a valuethat a lot of people don't
know that you provide is,data, analysis and reports
that you make public.
and this is a, anincredible service.
you've recently postedyour, zero waste report.
Can you tell us, about that andwhat was involved with that?
Evan Gwynn Davies (09:19):
Absolutely.
So yes, the Road to Zero WasteReport 2024, it is out now, it
is live, so please do feel freeto check it out on the website.
The report was designed becausewhen we started speaking
with decision makers aroundtheir zero waste strategy,
we started to understand thatthere is an education gap.
It's not because they don't wantto become zero waste or adopt
(09:41):
the circular economy model.
It's because it'sa very new concept.
When you start researchingthe circular economy or waste
reduction strategies, you'll gethit with mostly research papers.
You don't actually get hit withcommercialization because we're
still so early to the market.
So we produce these reportsusing our data to help educate
the people who are makingthese decisions going forward.
(10:03):
A lot of the prospects that Ispeak with will say they have
a zero waste strategy But itcompromises of burning all of
their rubbish for energy nowI think that's a big one that
I really want to just Hit onfor a second the definition
of zero waste is that you arenot burning it And turning
it into energy because thatassumes a finite mindset.
(10:25):
The idea of the circulareconomy is it's infinitely
circular, right?
It can go back into its rawmaterials and get Reproduced
into something else andyou keep going in a circle.
It didn't quite sit right withus We were thinking everyone's
people are saying they've gotthe zero waste strategy and
they've got these really goodrecycling rates But when you
get under the definitions,which again, that's another
(10:45):
thing country by countryDefinitions vary on what
does recycling really mean?
So i'm not going to call outany countries in particular,
but they might be in thiscantonavian region When
they have these brilliant95 recycling rates But you
actually understand that almosttwo thirds of that is because
they're burning it You then haveto start thinking hang on this
isn't solving the problem Sothis sounds like we're kicking a
(11:07):
can down the road So we createdthe report to shed a light on
these New strategies that we'refinding in the market that
can be implemented today Thatcould help a business actually
effectively include a zero wastestrategy that's built to last.
As you might have noticed on ourwebsite, we are scraprecycling.
com.
(11:28):
We're actually, spoiler alert,getting rid of the recycling,
because we've learned that we'rea lot more than just recycling.
You're probably familiarwith the three R's,
reduce, reuse, recycle.
But we know it can be thebiggest mover to go zero waste.
there's no waste to handleif you don't produce it
in the first place, right?
So the zero waste report isreally tying into that idea
(11:50):
that how do we rethink wastemore into a resource and a
commodity and treat it likethat at the beginning of its
life rather than an afterthoughtonce it gets put in the bin.
So that's really what we'redoing with the report.
Brodie (12:04):
I think that's amazing.
I, one, Corey and I were bothreally happy and honored to
be a part of that report.
So if you do get a chance toreview it or look through it,
you'll get to see, Corey andI's faces pop up throughout.
But I think that pieceabout recycling can't
be the end goal, right?
I think a circular economyhas to be our goal, but
(12:26):
recycling isn't, it's not thesame thing, there's a reason
we're not saying recyclingis the end goal, we're saying
circular economy is becauseit has to continue, reuse is
a part of that, compostingis a part of that, there's
so many cool things in themarket that are contributing
to that, including recycling.
Thank you.
But mostly on top of it, Ithink that a lot of the things
(12:46):
that I'm personally excitedabout aren't really part of the
recycling infrastructure becausewe have to find different
ways to move the needle.
I'm curious if you guys, ifthere's anything, I read the
report, so I'm excited tohear what you think, but,
what are some new technologiesout in the market that maybe
are recycling, but maybearen't, that you and the team
(13:07):
at Scrap are excited about?
Evan Gwynn Davi (13:10):
Great question.
And also, yes, thank you foryour input on the report.
I really appreciate it.
we, the innovations that we'reseeing in the market, and I,
it's going to be so clicheof me saying it, but AI.
the, we, we know of theRecyclive folks who are
doing fantastic work on therecycling lines with their
robotic sorters using AIimage detection technology.
(13:32):
I think there's a hugeopportunity for that.
The other likes of wreath, theyare essentially helping digitize
the reuse movement There's alot of these technologies that
are making it a no brainer tobecome more circular because
through digitization you'reable to connect the dots that
you wouldn't be able to before.
The problem is up until nowis we've never digitized it.
(13:55):
It's always been analogand it's typically been the
waste haulers that have beenin control of a lot of the
conversation around waste.
And now we're starting to seethe likes of EPR legislation
and these other opportunitieslike DRS where we're now
having a bit more of anupstream involvement with it.
I think the technologies thatexcite me the most are the ones
that are bridging that gap.
(14:16):
And a lot of them are doingit through AI, a lot of them
are doing it through data.
I think recycling does,like you mentioned, Brody,
recycling does have a place.
We're in the digital world nowand data really is the currency.
So why not leverage thatin sustainability as
particularly more nicheon the circular economy?
(14:37):
We can, we live in a time where.
We have we now have so muchdata on sales and marketing
and you see the types ofsoftware that are out there
now that can Help makebetter decisions in the sales
department in the marketingdepartment, etc But where's
that for the circular economy?
And I think that's where theexcitement for me in the next
20 30 years is how that industryis going to grow Because you
(14:57):
can connect these dots in away that means that you're
not wasting Tons and tonsof resources for no reason.
Landfill space is runningout, and so by nature we
have to become more efficientbecause waste is going
to get exponentially moreexpensive as landfill fees
go up, space is reduced.
We're getting to a point whereit's whoa, we need technology
to help identify thesepatterns and figure it out.
(15:19):
And AI, unfortunately to becliche, is one of those that I'm
seeing a great opportunity with.
Brodie Vander Dussen (15:23):
I don't
Cory Connors (15:24):
think that's good.
Evan Gwynn Davies (15:25):
Yeah,
Cory Connors (15:25):
I don't think that's cliche.
that's, it's real.
It's what's happening in theindustry and to, for all of us,
DRS is Deposit Return Scheme.
Yeah, and I agree with you.
I think that is the key to afuture that is more circular.
Are you, in America, we'refinding numbers spike by more
(15:47):
than double for the ten statesthat have a deposit return
scheme for cans and bottles.
Are you finding those kindsof numbers in Europe as
well when the deposit returnscheme is implemented?
Evan Gwynn Davies (15:59):
Yeah, so there are a few countries
in Europe that already havebottle bills implemented
and they already have verysuccessful return rates.
I don't know exact numbers offthe top of my head but I know
they're like the 90 percentileupwards, like they're very good.
I know from the researchwe did with this, with
the bottle bills in the U.
S.
I know they have veryhigh, I think Massachusetts
was around 95 percent.
(16:20):
But, And in the UK, they'restruggling, they are going
through a little bit of aninternal conflict between
England, Scotland, Wales andNorthern Ireland on how to
run the deposit return scheme.
So, that's something that we'rekeeping an eye on, but we're
starting to, we've learnedthat you can't rely on the
legislation entirely becausesometimes they can't even make
up their own mind, so it'show do you find other ways.
(16:42):
Of moving the needle but Ithink DRS is a really big
opportunity The reason why DRSwas made in the first place
the deposit return schemeswere to incentivize consumers
to bring back their materialsto the waste stream segregated
clean ready to be Recycledinto something new when it
was first introduced in 1971.
(17:03):
It was five centsa bottle or a can
Cory Connors (17:06):
in oregon
Evan Gwynn Davies (17:07):
where I live And In that time
they have barely increased.
In some areas actuallynot increased at all.
we've recently had a 10cents one come in the
United States, but you'relooking at mostly 5 cents.
Now, if we go on the samelogic that the idea of the
bottle bill was to incentivizeconsumers to bring it back, if
(17:29):
that kept up with inflation,it should be 40 cents.
That's quite a big difference.
And a lot of the feedback wewere getting from our users, we
did a lot of user research inthe early days, which I think
was a really good foundationfor us in terms of knowledge.
When we did.
Over, everyone was bored inCOVID, so we got to speak to
a thousand users to figure outwhat motivates them to recycle.
(17:49):
And we found that deposit returnschemes For the majority of
people there weren't enoughfive cents really like you're
paying more in gas to go to thedeposit return scheme Right, so
I think for it to be effectiveyou do have to look at how could
we increase that deposit value?
But again, there's lead there'sother levers you've got to think
about because if you increaseit too much the price of goods
go up and Then it prices out ofthe product and I think there's
(18:14):
a lot of nuance with it andI'm interested to see how it
rolls out, especially in Europe.
I know they're currentlylooking in the UK.
They're looking at 10 P abottle, which is about 12,
13, 12, 13 cents, depending onwho's in charge at the time.
Cory Connors (18:26):
Exciting.
It's I agree.
It's the way Ithink we need to do.
We need to embrace the depositreturn scheme for drinks Oh and
as well as like germany, have areusable bottle scheme And there
should be a deposit for thatas well Here's your money back.
Thank you So much for bringingour packaging back and we'll
(18:46):
refill it with, drinks againand send it back to you.
it's such a simple concept.
It works.
We need to do that.
we just had Tom Szakyon from TerraCycle.
We were talking aboutreusable packaging.
And, Kraft Heinzketchup bottles.
All they had to do to makeit reusable was change
the adhesive on the label.
Come on, that'ssuch a simple thing.
(19:06):
It doesn't, it didn'ttake much at all.
And it's a huge success.
So
Brodie Vander Dussen (19:11):
I think that the, I hope to see the
return bottle schemes and.
return package schemes beinga bigger thing in the US,
I think, globally, really,but, I think it sets a really
great foundation for reusein general, like we've talked
about with loop and, Tom,this isn't a new concept.
(19:32):
It's been around forhow many years and is.
Was successful and then anaspect of it got away from us
with inflation and the thingslike that, it's no longer
worth it to consumers, but thatfeels like an easy fix to me.
I think if it was caught up withinflation, 40 cents a bottle
makes, makes it worth it forfamilies or for people whose
time is important to them.
(19:53):
our culture has gotten so hot.
Forward with this convenienceand this everything is to you.
I really think that there'san easy solution out there.
Um, easy as.
Objective or subjective, but,I think, I dunno, I'm hopeful.
I'm hopeful that we couldturn this thing around.
Cause I think that there'ssome really good, there's
some good nuggets in there.
So scrap, how do we getin contact with you?
(20:16):
how do we get projects started?
How do I, if I'm a brand,how do I get some of that
data that you talked about?
What's next?
Evan Gwynn Davies (20:25):
Absolutely.
you, so you can reachout to me, my email
Evan at scrap recycling.
com or through LinkedIn.
Always active on linkedinputting fun little posts
about bottle bills keepingup with inflation for example
And yeah, we check out ourwebsite on our website.
You can reach out tothe team book in a call.
we do we run discoverycalls you jump on it's a
(20:46):
15 minute No commitment.
No sales script thing We justcome here to listen to your
problems around waste and wesee whether we can help you
first before we then Showyou what the data can do and
how it can benefit becauselike I said before it's not
for everyone Right, and we'reaware of that and people are
at different stages in theirjourney But you can bookmark
this and if when the time comesyou reach out to us and we
can carry on the conversation
Cory Connors (21:08):
You mentioned a new website.
Can you reveal the bigannouncement today?
What's the new website?
Evan Gwynn Davies (21:13):
Yes, we can.
Yeah There's been a big updateon the website We now have
you can look on our front pageand you can see a nice little
Bucket follow the buckets ofwhere you sit in terms of your
waste journey And use that asa way to navigate the website.
We've streamlined it We've addedin some nice video animations
as well to show you how itinfluences your customers
(21:35):
Because as much as we do helpon the b2b side and we help
with the data tracking andthe Organization of formatting
of data what sets us apart iswe've got our consumer facing
angle with the mobile appSo you've you're empowering
customers with a tool to knowwhat to do with your product
at the end of its life Andnot just the packaging right?
It's everything shoes Youknow what to do with the box,
(21:55):
what do you do with the shoes,where's the repair shop, etc.
We wanna, we broadened thescope of recycling to go zero
waste, so we can give youthat kind of information for
your customers, so they know,Hey, love your brand, and
I see that you're actuallycaring for your product after
it's life, not just before.
Cory Connors (22:12):
What's the new web address?
Evan Gwynn Davies (22:15):
The new web address is still scraprecycling.
com right now.
It's meant to be.
If you, this is coming outin March, with, we'd love to
get your guys thoughts on it.
Scrap.
We're thinking scrap zero waste.
com.
I like that.
I know, Brady, you'vegot a marketing hat.
Easy to remember.
Yeah.
Scrap zero weight.
Like it's actually, sorry.
(22:35):
I figured thisprobably will get cut.
the, We are, Mikey and I havebeen going back and forth on
this and also my brother'sgot a marketing degree So
he's been involved as wellto become a family affair.
We don't know whethergoing scrapzero.
com or scrapzerowaste.
com Or
Cory Connors (22:53):
zero scrap.
com.
Maybe we'll ask the audience.
Yeah, we're still on heremaybe we can ask the listeners
send a message to Evan andMikey at scrap and Tell
them what website you thinkwould be the right one I
Evan Gwynn Davies (23:08):
love it.
I
Cory Connors (23:09):
appreciate that.
Yeah.
Thanks again, Evan.
Appreciate having you on.
Evan Gwynn Davies (23:12):
Thank you.
Brodie Vander Dus (23:12):
Thanks, Evan.
Welcome to Sustainable Packaging
(00:02):
with Cory Connors
Brodie (00:03):
and Brodie Vander Dussen .
Cory Connors (00:05):
We're super friend Evan Gwyn Davies, the
co founder and CEO of Scrapp.
And if you haven't heardof Scrap, listen up because
it's a really important andvaluable Story and business
that has a lot to offer somany of us in this industry.
(00:27):
I'm amazed at what they'veaccomplished in a short time.
and I'm excited about whatthey'll do in the future.
And Ithink if you haven't heard of
Scrap, I think that's, maybeyou're a first time listener of
Corey and I, before we startedrolling, we were talking a
little bit about how easy it isfor us to talk about scrap, not
only because they're friends ofours and that we really enjoy
(00:47):
working with them, but whatthey're doing and the value
that they bring to not onlyjust the space and industry
itself, but also the customersthat they work with, people
like us, just the statistics andthe information that they alone
really can have and can provide.
It's easy to talk about.
We bring them up a lot.
So, if you haven't heard ofthem, I'm assuming you're
(01:08):
a first time listener.
And so I'm going to saywelcome to, sustainable
packaging podcast.
but also welcome Evan.
Evan Gwynn Davies (01:16):
Thank you both for having me.
Good to see you again.
And thank you so muchfor the kind words.
Really appreciate it.
Brodie Vander Dussen (01:22):
Evan for our first time listener,
obviously, you want toshare a little bit about
yourself and scrap andwhat you guys are up to.
Evan Gwynn Davies (01:30):
Absolutely.
So hi folks.
My name's evan.
I'm the co founder and ceoof Scrapp We're a waste data
tracking platform that enablesbusinesses, brands, retailers to
help track their waste footprintover global markets so they
can communicate the correctdisposal of their products.
We originally started offas a university dorm room
project, just over, well,just over five years ago
(01:51):
now, originally, and we had abarcode scanning app where you
could scan the barcode of aproduct anywhere in the world
and learn how to recycle it.
We were frustrated.
At seeing plastic bags putin the recycling bin that we
knew that shouldn't be there.
So we created a solutionto provide at point of
disposal information.
And then when we started todig further into it, we became
a little bit more than justa free app for consumers.
(02:12):
We started to learn there'sa real opportunity with data
and a lack of it that couldreally help propel our movement
towards a circular economy.
So that's now what we do tohelp businesses essentially
reduce their waste footprintby optimizing for end markets.
Cory Connors (02:25):
Incredible.
And, we should also mention ourvery good friend, Mikey Pachuto.
He's been on the show before,and, you two and your team
there at Scrap have accomplishedso much in just a short time.
it's really impressive.
So you mentioned that youstarted out as a project, at,
in university in America, right?
(02:46):
Or, yeah, which is so cool.
And you started out as an app,which is the, where the name
came from scrap, which I thinkis so appropriate, really clever
name, but you've evolved intoso much more, I wanted to talk
to you about and maybe focuson maybe one project, like with
one of your partners that wouldexplain to our listener what
(03:10):
scrap does and can do for them.
Evan Gwynn Davies (03:13):
So a recent project that we've been working
on, I won't name them byname, but to give you an idea,
they're in the food industry.
they produce millions andmillions of pounds of,
food for the fish markets.
I don't want to say toomuch to give it away, but
they, That huge supplierof sushi, in the U S.
(03:34):
And so what we did is weusing our data system was
able to quantify the amountof material throughput that
they're generating into themarkets they distribute to
within the United States.
Really important informationto get organized,
especially for EPR.
So just by nature of workingwith us, they're already.
getting ahead of the EPRcompliance that's going to
be coming to states prettysoon, already in some, and
(03:58):
we were also able to lookat recommendations that we
could give them based onthe markets that they're
selling into to designfor this circular economy.
So whether Is it the rightoption to use a compostable
piece of packaging and wrappingit in a compostable wrap,
or is it better to have areusable HDPE container that
it's getting shipped in, thatwe can get certain number of
(04:21):
use cases out, and what doesthe impact of that look like?
We're essentially giving dataAnd organizing it and formatting
it to make better decisionsaround the sustainability of a
given product and supply chain.
We really try and target asmuch of the value chain as we
can upstream, because that'swhere we're finding we can have
the biggest impact downstream.
(04:43):
to contextualize it, I alwaysbring it back to the app when
we initially started, right?
Why is the only onuson us to put our waste
into the right bin?
Why not instead we look furtherupstream and go, hang on, if
we could design this productin a way that was optimized for
where it's being distributedto, surely that makes it a
much easier job for you andI to put it in the right
(05:05):
bin, and you don't hear thesehorrible statistics like 8
out of 10 of us recyclingcorrectly because we can't,
or we just don't know how.
so that's really whatwe've now molded ourselves
into, if you like.
Cory Connors (05:16):
Or it's not available.
50 million households in the U.
S., I think I learnedthat from, Recyclops, is,
don't even have curbsiderecycling available to them.
Exactly.
so they have to take that extraeffort, and people like us do
that, but, like you said, if,what if we design the product
so that it doesn't, It's easy torecycle or reuse or, or compost.
(05:38):
these, all of theseoptions are amazing.
And like you said,data, extended producer
responsibility.
These are the thingsthat people really need
to be aware of today.
Brodie Vander Dussen (05:47):
not only being aware of, but also I
think there is an underlyingdesire to do the right thing
or to make packaging moresustainable, but how we do that.
And what makes itsomething sustainable?
I think are questionsthat all of us have, even
no matter really wherewe are in the journey.
And so having the data, I thinkis something that's Vital to
(06:10):
being able to move forward.
So I think it's really coolthat you guys help that, is
it better to be compostable?
Is it better to be recyclable?
Because those are not thesame thing and they are
completely different packagingand really depend on what the
product is and the marketsand a thousand factors.
So the data is really important.
I think to be able to makethat decision or even have that
conversation to figure that out.
(06:32):
And I love thedownstream to upstream.
I think that's, it takes allof us to, The people who are
designing the packaging, thepeople that you're using the
packaging, the people who aredisposing, collecting, to really
make that circular economy.
So having everyone involvedsounds like you guys are have a
hand in everything, every stepof that process to, companies
(06:52):
that you guys are working with.
So you mentioned someonein the food industry.
Do you guys work withspecific industries, specific
spaces, or maybe even stepsin that circular economy
or kind of everything?
Evan Gwynn Davies (07:05):
Yeah, so we originally when we started to
understand where we were goingas a business, it really opened
our eyes because we figured ifyou produce waste, you could
be a Client of ours, right?
But that's a big ocean ofpotential clients, right?
And we really need to nichedown here because like
you said, it's different.
There's different requirementsfor different organizations that
(07:26):
you might just not align withsustainability wise, or they've
done everything they can.
And there's nothingelse that they can do.
So what we're findingwith the organizations
we're working with.
A lot of the companies that arein closed loop environments,
the ones that are like stadiums,events, venues, areas where
they have a good control ofthe inflows and outflows,
(07:48):
or we can give them data oncontrolling those inflows
and outflows better, iswhere we're getting a lot of
interest because that's wherewe know that the use case of
reuse can succeed really well.
When we work with, we areworking with medium sized
brands and retailers at themoment, we've also worked
with some of the biggest,one of the biggest beauty and
(08:09):
cosmetics brands in the world.
there's a case study comingout on it really soon
that we've done with Avon.
And we're finding that thedifference in the appetite for
sustainability is so different,even in the same industry,
it's very difficult for usto create that repeatable,
hey, here's your problem,this is how we can solve you.
We really have to comein hands on Get under
(08:30):
the skin of it and go.
Okay.
How can we work with you to geta solution that works for you?
Cause the famous thing,the famous saying is
sustainability, right?
Is it depends.
And so there's this onesize fits all really
becomes difficult to do.
And so the breadth of customerswe're working with, like I
said, from stadiums all theway up to beauty cosmetics
brands, if they're producingwaste, there is a interest
(08:52):
in them to track it, butwe're not really seeing any
consistency at the moment withthe ones that are prioritizing
the ones that are not.
Cory Connors (08:58):
You mentioned a report coming out.
I think this is a valuethat a lot of people don't
know that you provide is,data, analysis and reports
that you make public.
and this is a, anincredible service.
you've recently postedyour, zero waste report.
Can you tell us, about that andwhat was involved with that?
Evan Gwynn Davies (09:19):
Absolutely.
So yes, the Road to Zero WasteReport 2024, it is out now, it
is live, so please do feel freeto check it out on the website.
The report was designed becausewhen we started speaking
with decision makers aroundtheir zero waste strategy,
we started to understand thatthere is an education gap.
It's not because they don't wantto become zero waste or adopt
(09:41):
the circular economy model.
It's because it'sa very new concept.
When you start researchingthe circular economy or waste
reduction strategies, you'll gethit with mostly research papers.
You don't actually get hit withcommercialization because we're
still so early to the market.
So we produce these reportsusing our data to help educate
the people who are makingthese decisions going forward.
(10:03):
A lot of the prospects that Ispeak with will say they have
a zero waste strategy But itcompromises of burning all of
their rubbish for energy nowI think that's a big one that
I really want to just Hit onfor a second the definition
of zero waste is that you arenot burning it And turning
it into energy because thatassumes a finite mindset.
(10:25):
The idea of the circulareconomy is it's infinitely
circular, right?
It can go back into its rawmaterials and get Reproduced
into something else andyou keep going in a circle.
It didn't quite sit right withus We were thinking everyone's
people are saying they've gotthe zero waste strategy and
they've got these really goodrecycling rates But when you
get under the definitions,which again, that's another
(10:45):
thing country by countryDefinitions vary on what
does recycling really mean?
So i'm not going to call outany countries in particular,
but they might be in thiscantonavian region When
they have these brilliant95 recycling rates But you
actually understand that almosttwo thirds of that is because
they're burning it You then haveto start thinking hang on this
isn't solving the problem Sothis sounds like we're kicking a
(11:07):
can down the road So we createdthe report to shed a light on
these New strategies that we'refinding in the market that
can be implemented today Thatcould help a business actually
effectively include a zero wastestrategy that's built to last.
As you might have noticed on ourwebsite, we are scraprecycling.
com.
(11:28):
We're actually, spoiler alert,getting rid of the recycling,
because we've learned that we'rea lot more than just recycling.
You're probably familiarwith the three R's,
reduce, reuse, recycle.
But we know it can be thebiggest mover to go zero waste.
there's no waste to handleif you don't produce it
in the first place, right?
So the zero waste report isreally tying into that idea
(11:50):
that how do we rethink wastemore into a resource and a
commodity and treat it likethat at the beginning of its
life rather than an afterthoughtonce it gets put in the bin.
So that's really what we'redoing with the report.
Brodie (12:04):
I think that's amazing.
I, one, Corey and I were bothreally happy and honored to
be a part of that report.
So if you do get a chance toreview it or look through it,
you'll get to see, Corey andI's faces pop up throughout.
But I think that pieceabout recycling can't
be the end goal, right?
I think a circular economyhas to be our goal, but
(12:26):
recycling isn't, it's not thesame thing, there's a reason
we're not saying recyclingis the end goal, we're saying
circular economy is becauseit has to continue, reuse is
a part of that, compostingis a part of that, there's
so many cool things in themarket that are contributing
to that, including recycling.
Thank you.
But mostly on top of it, Ithink that a lot of the things
(12:46):
that I'm personally excitedabout aren't really part of the
recycling infrastructure becausewe have to find different
ways to move the needle.
I'm curious if you guys, ifthere's anything, I read the
report, so I'm excited tohear what you think, but,
what are some new technologiesout in the market that maybe
are recycling, but maybearen't, that you and the team
(13:07):
at Scrap are excited about?
Evan Gwynn Davi (13:10):
Great question.
And also, yes, thank you foryour input on the report.
I really appreciate it.
we, the innovations that we'reseeing in the market, and I,
it's going to be so clicheof me saying it, but AI.
the, we, we know of theRecyclive folks who are
doing fantastic work on therecycling lines with their
robotic sorters using AIimage detection technology.
(13:32):
I think there's a hugeopportunity for that.
The other likes of wreath, theyare essentially helping digitize
the reuse movement There's alot of these technologies that
are making it a no brainer tobecome more circular because
through digitization you'reable to connect the dots that
you wouldn't be able to before.
The problem is up until nowis we've never digitized it.
(13:55):
It's always been analogand it's typically been the
waste haulers that have beenin control of a lot of the
conversation around waste.
And now we're starting to seethe likes of EPR legislation
and these other opportunitieslike DRS where we're now
having a bit more of anupstream involvement with it.
I think the technologies thatexcite me the most are the ones
that are bridging that gap.
(14:16):
And a lot of them are doingit through AI, a lot of them
are doing it through data.
I think recycling does,like you mentioned, Brody,
recycling does have a place.
We're in the digital world nowand data really is the currency.
So why not leverage thatin sustainability as
particularly more nicheon the circular economy?
(14:37):
We can, we live in a time where.
We have we now have so muchdata on sales and marketing
and you see the types ofsoftware that are out there
now that can Help makebetter decisions in the sales
department in the marketingdepartment, etc But where's
that for the circular economy?
And I think that's where theexcitement for me in the next
20 30 years is how that industryis going to grow Because you
(14:57):
can connect these dots in away that means that you're
not wasting Tons and tonsof resources for no reason.
Landfill space is runningout, and so by nature we
have to become more efficientbecause waste is going
to get exponentially moreexpensive as landfill fees
go up, space is reduced.
We're getting to a point whereit's whoa, we need technology
to help identify thesepatterns and figure it out.
(15:19):
And AI, unfortunately to becliche, is one of those that I'm
seeing a great opportunity with.
Brodie Vander Dussen (15:23):
I don't
Cory Connors (15:24):
think that's good.
Evan Gwynn Davies (15:25):
Yeah,
Cory Connors (15:25):
I don't think that's cliche.
that's, it's real.
It's what's happening in theindustry and to, for all of us,
DRS is Deposit Return Scheme.
Yeah, and I agree with you.
I think that is the key to afuture that is more circular.
Are you, in America, we'refinding numbers spike by more
(15:47):
than double for the ten statesthat have a deposit return
scheme for cans and bottles.
Are you finding those kindsof numbers in Europe as
well when the deposit returnscheme is implemented?
Evan Gwynn Davies (15:59):
Yeah, so there are a few countries
in Europe that already havebottle bills implemented
and they already have verysuccessful return rates.
I don't know exact numbers offthe top of my head but I know
they're like the 90 percentileupwards, like they're very good.
I know from the researchwe did with this, with
the bottle bills in the U.
S.
I know they have veryhigh, I think Massachusetts
was around 95 percent.
(16:20):
But, And in the UK, they'restruggling, they are going
through a little bit of aninternal conflict between
England, Scotland, Wales andNorthern Ireland on how to
run the deposit return scheme.
So, that's something that we'rekeeping an eye on, but we're
starting to, we've learnedthat you can't rely on the
legislation entirely becausesometimes they can't even make
up their own mind, so it'show do you find other ways.
(16:42):
Of moving the needle but Ithink DRS is a really big
opportunity The reason why DRSwas made in the first place
the deposit return schemeswere to incentivize consumers
to bring back their materialsto the waste stream segregated
clean ready to be Recycledinto something new when it
was first introduced in 1971.
(17:03):
It was five centsa bottle or a can
Cory Connors (17:06):
in oregon
Evan Gwynn Davies (17:07):
where I live And In that time
they have barely increased.
In some areas actuallynot increased at all.
we've recently had a 10cents one come in the
United States, but you'relooking at mostly 5 cents.
Now, if we go on the samelogic that the idea of the
bottle bill was to incentivizeconsumers to bring it back, if
(17:29):
that kept up with inflation,it should be 40 cents.
That's quite a big difference.
And a lot of the feedback wewere getting from our users, we
did a lot of user research inthe early days, which I think
was a really good foundationfor us in terms of knowledge.
When we did.
Over, everyone was bored inCOVID, so we got to speak to
a thousand users to figure outwhat motivates them to recycle.
(17:49):
And we found that deposit returnschemes For the majority of
people there weren't enoughfive cents really like you're
paying more in gas to go to thedeposit return scheme Right, so
I think for it to be effectiveyou do have to look at how could
we increase that deposit value?
But again, there's lead there'sother levers you've got to think
about because if you increaseit too much the price of goods
go up and Then it prices out ofthe product and I think there's
(18:14):
a lot of nuance with it andI'm interested to see how it
rolls out, especially in Europe.
I know they're currentlylooking in the UK.
They're looking at 10 P abottle, which is about 12,
13, 12, 13 cents, depending onwho's in charge at the time.
Cory Connors (18:26):
Exciting.
It's I agree.
It's the way Ithink we need to do.
We need to embrace the depositreturn scheme for drinks Oh and
as well as like germany, have areusable bottle scheme And there
should be a deposit for thatas well Here's your money back.
Thank you So much for bringingour packaging back and we'll
(18:46):
refill it with, drinks againand send it back to you.
it's such a simple concept.
It works.
We need to do that.
we just had Tom Szakyon from TerraCycle.
We were talking aboutreusable packaging.
And, Kraft Heinzketchup bottles.
All they had to do to makeit reusable was change
the adhesive on the label.
Come on, that'ssuch a simple thing.
(19:06):
It doesn't, it didn'ttake much at all.
And it's a huge success.
So
Brodie Vander Dussen (19:11):
I think that the, I hope to see the
return bottle schemes and.
return package schemes beinga bigger thing in the US,
I think, globally, really,but, I think it sets a really
great foundation for reusein general, like we've talked
about with loop and, Tom,this isn't a new concept.
(19:32):
It's been around forhow many years and is.
Was successful and then anaspect of it got away from us
with inflation and the thingslike that, it's no longer
worth it to consumers, but thatfeels like an easy fix to me.
I think if it was caught up withinflation, 40 cents a bottle
makes, makes it worth it forfamilies or for people whose
time is important to them.
(19:53):
our culture has gotten so hot.
Forward with this convenienceand this everything is to you.
I really think that there'san easy solution out there.
Um, easy as.
Objective or subjective, but,I think, I dunno, I'm hopeful.
I'm hopeful that we couldturn this thing around.
Cause I think that there'ssome really good, there's
some good nuggets in there.
So scrap, how do we getin contact with you?
(20:16):
how do we get projects started?
How do I, if I'm a brand,how do I get some of that
data that you talked about?
What's next?
Evan Gwynn Davies (20:25):
Absolutely.
you, so you can reachout to me, my email
Evan at scrap recycling.
com or through LinkedIn.
Always active on linkedinputting fun little posts
about bottle bills keepingup with inflation for example
And yeah, we check out ourwebsite on our website.
You can reach out tothe team book in a call.
we do we run discoverycalls you jump on it's a
(20:46):
15 minute No commitment.
No sales script thing We justcome here to listen to your
problems around waste and wesee whether we can help you
first before we then Showyou what the data can do and
how it can benefit becauselike I said before it's not
for everyone Right, and we'reaware of that and people are
at different stages in theirjourney But you can bookmark
this and if when the time comesyou reach out to us and we
can carry on the conversation
Cory Connors (21:08):
You mentioned a new website.
Can you reveal the bigannouncement today?
What's the new website?
Evan Gwynn Davies (21:13):
Yes, we can.
Yeah There's been a big updateon the website We now have
you can look on our front pageand you can see a nice little
Bucket follow the buckets ofwhere you sit in terms of your
waste journey And use that asa way to navigate the website.
We've streamlined it We've addedin some nice video animations
as well to show you how itinfluences your customers
(21:35):
Because as much as we do helpon the b2b side and we help
with the data tracking andthe Organization of formatting
of data what sets us apart iswe've got our consumer facing
angle with the mobile appSo you've you're empowering
customers with a tool to knowwhat to do with your product
at the end of its life Andnot just the packaging right?
It's everything shoes Youknow what to do with the box,
(21:55):
what do you do with the shoes,where's the repair shop, etc.
We wanna, we broadened thescope of recycling to go zero
waste, so we can give youthat kind of information for
your customers, so they know,Hey, love your brand, and
I see that you're actuallycaring for your product after
it's life, not just before.
Cory Connors (22:12):
What's the new web address?
Evan Gwynn Davies (22:15):
The new web address is still scraprecycling.
com right now.
It's meant to be.
If you, this is coming outin March, with, we'd love to
get your guys thoughts on it.
Scrap.
We're thinking scrap zero waste.
com.
I like that.
I know, Brady, you'vegot a marketing hat.
Easy to remember.
Yeah.
Scrap zero weight.
Like it's actually, sorry.
(22:35):
I figured thisprobably will get cut.
the, We are, Mikey and I havebeen going back and forth on
this and also my brother'sgot a marketing degree So
he's been involved as wellto become a family affair.
We don't know whethergoing scrapzero.
com or scrapzerowaste.
com Or
Cory Connors (22:53):
zero scrap.
com.
Maybe we'll ask the audience.
Yeah, we're still on heremaybe we can ask the listeners
send a message to Evan andMikey at scrap and Tell
them what website you thinkwould be the right one I
Evan Gwynn Davies (23:08):
love it.
I
Cory Connors (23:09):
appreciate that.
Yeah.
Thanks again, Evan.
Appreciate having you on.
Evan Gwynn Davies (23:12):
Thank you.
Brodie Vander Dus (23:12):
Thanks, Evan.
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