The new standards are the result of a two-year collaboration with OceanCycle, a leading social enterprise focusing on reducing ocean plastic pollution.
According to UL, these strengthened industry standards include critical new social standards, ethical sourcing criteria, third-party, independent validation of all recycled ocean-bound plastics, clear definitions of ocean-bound materials and standards on where coastal collection should happen.
UL said the new standards provide “a 100 percent independent, third-party certification of ocean-bound plastics’ recycling supply chains to help ensure that standards meet international quality, ethical, environmental and labor requirements.”
Consumer electronics products that follow the standards will be marked OceanCycle Certified™ (OCC), with the consumers assured that the materials contained in the product have end-to-end traceability, from bottle collection through manufacturing.
Dr Bill Hoffman, senior scientist at UL, said: “At UL, we are committed to the highest standards of ethics and believe our collaboration with OceanCycle will help bring greater clarity around what should be ocean and ocean-bound plastics.
“It’s our intent that this clarity around ocean and ocean-bound plastics will lead to more trust for brands and consumers and focus the world’s attention on regions most at risk for ocean plastic pollution.”
Among the criteria covered by the new standards are: assurances that the ocean-bound plastics are ethically sourced, doesn’t involve harmful child labor; and that they have been collected within 30 miles of a coast or along river banks within 200 miles of the mouth of the water.