PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 20, 2021
The value of household paper, cardboard, plastic and metal skyrocketed over the last year, setting Maine’s recycling industry on steady footing after years of losing money in a slumping commodities market. Prices soared as new U.S. mills came online to process recycled waste into new products at the same time demand surged during the pandemic for products such as toilet paper and packaging material and prices rose for some “virgin” materials. Some analysts think the recent boom could be a course-correction after a prolonged market downturn blamed on China’s ban on most recycling imports three years ago.