November 19, 2021
According to a 2020 report from Ocean Conservancy, 8 million metric tons of plastics enter our oceans each year, in addition to the estimated 150 million metric tons that currently circulate in marine environments. Environmentalists recognize ocean plastics as a critical environmental problem worldwide, and they are the subject of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Heng Hiap Industries Sdn Bhd (HHI) is proud to help tackle this global issue and achieve the UL Environmental Claim Validation (ECV) for their products.
HHI is a fully integrated recycling company in Malaysia. Committed to the environment, HHI has undertaken initiatives to reduce ocean plastics. UL 2809, Environmental Claim Validation Procedure (ECVP) for Recycled Content, precisely measures the amount of recycled content in products. The recently updated procedure includes assessments of the social impacts of collecting pre-consumer and post-consumer ocean-bound plastics on local economies, including criteria for ocean-bound and ocean sourced plastics.
HHI recycles ocean-bound plastics collected locally from areas within 20 kilometers of the shoreline, diverting that waste from the ocean — keeping it from harming ocean life and polluting water. This plastic is collected and then passed to their facility for recycling, where workers convert scrap that is reused in a range of applications, from consumer products to specialized, niche applications.
Supplying various industries ranging from fast-moving consumer goods to home appliances and automotive, HHI delivers specialized recycled plastics with quality and performance that help their customers reduce cost and minimize reliance on virgin plastics.
“The decision to pursue UL validation is one that helps enable businesses and consumers to choose products made from recycled ocean bound plastic. We hope other recyclers will follow suit and take this bold step to reduce use of virgin plastics and divert plastics from our oceans,” said Mr. Tey Boon How, deputy general manager of HHI and also the team leader for the Ocean Bound Plastic Project.
UL’s ECVP for Recycled Content measures the amount of recycled content in products through a rigorous scientific analysis. The resulting validation lends credibility to businesses’ sustainability claims and offers insight into a company’s supply chain and operational processes.
Doug Lockard, vice president and general manager, Retail and Consumer Products, UL said, “By earning the UL Ocean Bound Plastic Validation, HHI puts the power of science-based validation behind its commitment to reduce ocean plastics. This lends credibility to their efforts and sets their recycled plastics apart in a marketplace that increasingly demands sustainable solutions.”
Learn more about UL’s ECVP for Recycled Content.
“The decision to pursue UL validation is one that helps enable businesses and consumers to choose products made from recycled ocean bound plastic. We hope other recyclers will follow suit and take this bold step to reduce use of virgin plastics and divert plastics from our oceans.”