Naniwa, Key Logistics Partner of the “pool” Business, Attains Ministerial Certification
2024.01.24
5 min read
Naniwa, Key Logistics Partner of the “pool” Business, Attains Ministerial Certification Under the New Plastic Law, Enabling Nationwide Plastic Collection
Recotech Co., Ltd. (CEO: Ei Nozaki, hereinafter referred to as “Recotech”), is pleased to announce that NANIWA Co.Ltd. (CEO: Hirotaka Azuma, hereinafter referred to as “Naniwa”), our partner in the pool business, has received ministerial certification from the Minister of the Environment and the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry under the Plastic Resource Circulation Promotion Law, commonly known as the “New Plastic Law.”
While specializing in logistics of apparel products, Naniwa has been a key partner in our pool business. They have actively promoted environmental initiatives over the years, such as reducing cardboard waste and using the EcoBiz BOX1 for their delivery. Collaborating within the framework of the pool business, which uses the Circularity Design Tool – pool (hereinafter referred to as “pool”) to collect and recycle flexible plastic derived from apparel, Naniwa has played a vital role in collecting the plastics with its reverse logistics.
With this certification, we can now expand our collections of currently incinerated plastics, that were previously limited to Tokyo, nationwide. This expansion will enable us to optimize collection efficiency, and scale up the pool business to a commercial level, establishing a stable supply chain for high-quality PCR materials.
Background
In recent times, urgent issues such as the climate crisis and ocean plastic pollution have made decarbonization and the realization of a circular economy a global priority. In response, specific legislative measures, particularly in Europe and the United States, are accelerating, such as the reduction of plastic waste and the mandatory use of recycled materials in products. In Japan, the Plastic Resource Circulation Promotion Law, known as the “New Plastic Law,” was enacted in 2022, contributing to the promotion of plastic circulation by municipalities and businesses.
The biggest challenge in promoting circularity with plastics is production cost, usually translating directly to collection efficiency. To effectively incorporate recycled plastics in products, meticulous sorting and logistics management are necessary from a quality control perspective, along with new collection schemes. Traditionally, under Japanese waste disposal laws, the collection and disposal of plastic were limited to companies with permits, resulting in inefficient collection. The New Plastic Law has partially relaxed the conventional waste disposal law within the scope of certified recycling plans approved by the minister in charge, introducing a certification system to promote the efforts of companies and municipalities in plastic recycling.
About pool business
Recotech has been actively involved in the “Innovative Technology and Business Promotion Project for Plastic Resource Circulation” initiated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government since 2021. Anticipating the enforcement of the New Plastic Law, Recotech has expanded its pool business as a joint demonstration project, with permission from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to collect and process plastics. The pool business efficiently collects transparent flexible plastics, such as hanger covers generated by commercial facilities and clothing stores via reverse logistics, and recycling them with ensured traceability. This initiative, by selectively collecting sorted plastics, not only reduces CO2 emissions during collection but also creates a sustainable and circular supply chain by eliminating the need for washing and drying processes.
While the collection targets were initially limited within Tokyo, the certification has now allowed the expansion of collection areas nationwide.
Certification Details
Naniwa, through collaboration with Recotech, has obtained the certification as a resource recycling business operator, based on the knowledge and experience gained from the plastic collection and processing operations and waste information management using “pool” within the pool business. This certification allows Naniwa to be recognized as a certified resource recycling business operator, enabling legal collection and recycling of plastic waste within the scope of the approved plastic recycling plan.
Future Prospects
With this certification, the collection areas for the pool business will expand nationwide, aiming to scale up sustainable circular supply chains through the mechanical recycling of flexible plastic films originating from clothing stores.
About Naniwa
Naniwa constructs logistics services that respond to the diverse needs of the fashion and clothing industry, promoting sustainable and safety-conscious logistics services to contribute to their customers, and simultaneously pursuing the happiness of all employees.
About RECOTECH
Recotech is a Climate Tech Startup with a mission to “take responsibility for today’s problems, and build a sustainable legacy.” The current waste management system primarily involves incineration or landfill, leaving a burden for the next generation. Recotech aims to transform this structure through technology and to build a nature-positive economy.
About Circularity Design Tool – pool
“pool” is a cloud service that transforms the end of resource value into a beginning. By digitizing urban resources, “pool” enhances collection efficiency, connects manufacturing companies that want to incorporate recycled materials into their products with dischargers, and enables us to design a circular supply chain. From waste to material, “pool” can prove and provide information on traceability and CO2 impact (scope3, category1&5) on every process throughout the supply chain, with each stakeholder simply inputting data with their smartphone or tablet.
