New Data: California Exceeds National Average on Access to Film and Flexibles Collection at Stores 

Across the U.S. right now, film and flexible packaging collection at stores is the most accessible pathway for recovering polyethylene (PE) film. Now, as California prepares to implement one of the most ambitious packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws in the country, new SPC data demonstrates a strong baseline of access to store drop-off (SDO) film and flexibles collection sites across the state. 

Meeting upcoming recycling requirements under California’s EPR law will require high-quality data on collection access. To better understand the current state of film collection access in the state, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) conducted Store Drop-off (SDO) collection site access analysis in California, building on our National Access Study to Store Drop-off for Polyethylene film. 

According to our January 2026 analysis, we found that: 

• 87.98% of consumers in California are within a 3-mile driving radius of Store Drop-off (SDO) collection for Polyethylene (PE) film 

• 97.19% are within a 10-mile driving radius of SDO collection for PE film 

• 99.13% are within a 20-mile driving radius of SDO collection for PE film

Why California 

California’s Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act (SB 54) is the most rigorous EPR law in the U.S. The law requires covered materials, such as plastic film and flexible packaging, to achieve a 30% recycling rate by 2028, which gradually increases to 40% by 2030, and 65% by 2032.  

Why Does Access to Collection for Films and Flexibles Matter?  

To move toward California’s recycling targets for plastic film and flexible packaging, industry partners have been joining forces to align on definitions, collect data, and bridge information gaps. The current blueprint for recycling progress in California includes improving: 

• Packaging design toward recyclability 

• Access and collection of recyclable packaging 

• The sortation and bailing of packaging  

• The reprocessing of bales into recycled resins with meaningful end-market applications 

Today, the current film and flexible collection system — consumers returning films to retailers’ drop-off bins — is the most accessible path for the recovery of Polyethylene (PE) film. In a future with expanded collection for films, these store collection sites would still be part of the solution, complementing other existing and emerging collection methods towards a shared goal of increased recovery for plastic films and flexible packaging.  

Consumer access to Store-Drop Off collection is the first piece of the recovery puzzle for these materials, with all eyes on California.  

Research Findings: Access to Film Collection Sites in California Exceeds Average Access Rate Across U.S.  

Using the methodology employed to produce SPC’s national SDO access study, our new SPC analysis provides an average percentage for film and flexible collection site access across California.  

California SDO Collection Access Rates:

Access levels to film and flexible collection sites in California exceed those observed in the SPC National SDO Study across all evaluated mile-radius thresholds.

Qualitative factors impacting higher California access include: 

• Higher population density: A larger share of California’s population lives in urban and suburban areas, increasing the proportion of residents located within short distances of retail locations. 
• Denser retail networks: Major population centers (e.g., Los Angeles, the Bay Area, San Diego) have closely spaced retail locations, resulting in overlapping service areas and higher access across distance thresholds. 

• Fewer extreme low-access outliers: California has a smaller proportion of residents living in very remote or sparsely populated areas compared to the U.S. overall, which reduces the influence of low-access regions on population weighted results. 

• Population and retail location proximity: Higher access outcomes in California suggest a closer alignment between population centers and retail locations, relative to national patterns. 

• Established program and market context: California’s long-standing environmental and retail participation frameworks may support broader and more consistent availability of Store Drop-off locations relative to national averages. 

Conclusion 

Our latest study successfully reproduced the methodology used for SPC’s national consumer access to Store Drop-off collection sites for PE film in California. The findings in this study demonstrate that the vast majority of Californians have access to film and flexible packaging collection at stores, with more than 92% of residents living within a 10-mile driving radius of an SDO collection site.  

Across all GreenBlue projects, we strive to listen, lead where we can, and maintain our long-term vision of building a world where the materials economy sustainably strengthens our environment.  

While we don’t own the Store Drop-off collection system, we understand its current role in achieving a circular materials economy and hope to advance the insights that produce more transparent, trustworthy systems for film recovery.   

To get involved, SPC members can join our SDO Film Recovery Collaborative today.