Waste and Recycling
On farms and in processing plants, Dole’s “reduce, reuse and recycle” approach continues to deliver initiatives that create less waste. Wherever waste is a material issue, we are committed to understanding and reducing our footprint. Improving our packaging through design and material component levels is also essential to reduce our plastic usage and transition to recyclable or compostable materials.
Costa Rica Waste Management
Nearly 30 years ago, back in 1994, as part of our longstanding commitment to reduce waste, Dole led the creation of a joint venture, Recyplast with another banana grower and a plastic product manufacturer (today the Montecristo Group) to recycle agricultural plastic. Recyplast recycles banana bags and twines from farms into plastic corner boards used to support pallets during transport. Over the years, Recyplast has expanded to include 22 post-consumer collection and recycling centres across Costa Rica which not only collect plastic for recycling from other agricultural operations such as pineapples and melons but also provide local communities with employment and development opportunities. In 2019, The U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica presented its first-ever Environmental Sustainability Award to Recyplast in recognition of the organisation’s pioneering work.
Waste Not, Want Not…
In our Dole Fresh Vegetables Division, two salad processing facilities in Bessemer City, North Carolina and Soledad, California are partnering with UCBZeroWaste, LLC, a company that collects waste data and uses their expertise of waste management to divert the amount of waste sent to landfill.
As a direct result of this engagement, Dole has streamlined processes to efficiently manage the variety of waste materials in these facilities and increased recycling rebates.
In our Soledad facility alone, we have recently identified and diverted 9% of materials destined for landfill through reuse, recycling and waste to energy activities since June 2022.
