Recyclable Material Wholesalers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 6,260 recyclable material wholesalers in the US distribute metal scrap, glass scrap, paper scrap, plastic scrap, and other recyclable materials for reuse in manufacturing, construction, and other applications. The industry includes auto wreckers who dismantle motor vehicles to resell scrap materials, rather than selling used auto parts.
Dependence On Economy
Demand for recyclable materials is dependent on economic conditions, particularly the strength of the manufacturing and construction sectors.
Volatile Scrap Prices
Prices for recycled materials can vary widely from year to year, affecting revenues and inventory valuations for wholesalers.
Industry size & Structure
The average recyclable material wholesaler has a single location, employs about 15-16 employees and generates $11-12 million in annual revenue.
- The industry consists of about 6,260 companies that employ 100,000 workers and generate $78 billion in annual revenue.
- The industry consists primarily of small family-owned businesses.
- The industry is fragmented, as the top 50 companies account for only 47% of industry revenue.
- Large companies include America Chung Nam (paper and plastic recycling), David J. Joseph Company (scrap metal and a subsidiary of Nucor Corp.), OmniSource (scrap metal and a subsidiary of Steel Dynamics, Inc.), Sims Metal Management (scrap metal and U.S. subsidiary of Sims Group Ltd. of Australia) and Radius Recycling (formerly Schnitzer Steel Industries).
- Some firms act as brokers, selling recycled materials for owners of material recovery facilities (MRFs), while others operate their own MRFs.
- Some large companies are vertically integrated and also process scrap material into finished products.
- The industry also competes with the recycling operations of large waste management companies, such as Waste Management, Inc. and Republic Services, Inc.
Industry Forecast
Recyclable Material Wholesalers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Mar 10, 2025 - Large Waste Firms Notched More Acquisitions in 2024
- Large, publicly traded waste haulers and recycling firms spent $10.9 billion on acquisitions in 2024 as the waste management industry continued to consolidate. With its $7.2 billion purchase of medical waste firm Stericycle, Waste Management (WM) accounted for the largest deal of 2024. Waste Connections made 24 acquisitions in 2024 with a value of over $2.1 billion, consisting of tuck-in deals and expansions into new markets. Casella Waste Systems spent $469.2 million on 2024 acquisitions, mainly building on its Mid-Atlantic market and expanding into New York’s Hudson Valley region. At just over $450.8 million, GFL Environmental spent less on deals than in recent years, focusing on smaller tuck-ins, reducing debt, and completing planned divestitures. Republic Services also had a quiet year with $358 million in 2024 deals. All five firms plan to continue their acquisitive strategies in 2025.
- Some waste and recycling trade groups have expressed concern that the Trump administration’s tariff strategy could affect recyclable commodities markets and increase operating costs, including crucial equipment and parts, according to Waste Dive. On January 21, 2025, President Trump declared that a 25% tariff would be imposed on imports from Canada and Mexico beginning on February 1, 2025. On February 3, Trump paused the tariffs for 30 days after Canada and Mexico agreed to increase their border security and drug interdiction efforts. A 10% tariff on goods from China went into effect in early February. The National Waste & Recycling Association and the Recycled Materials Association voiced concerns about the threat of tariffs, including higher costs, lower job creation, supply chain disruption, and reduced infrastructure investment. Waste and recycling trade groups also worry that tariffs could impact manufacturing industries that use recycled materials as key inputs. The 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico took effect on March 4, 2025, but two days later, Trump paused them for one month for products that are compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
- In 2023, the US recycling rate for aluminum cans was 43%, down from an average of about 52% since 1990, according to a report released in December by the Aluminum Association and the Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI). In 2021, CMI and its members established a goal of hitting a 70% recycling rate by 2030. However, given the current rate, achieving the CMI’s 2030 goal is unlikely given current US recycling systems and policy. To help improve aluminum recycling, in 2025 CMI plans to lobby for extended producer responsibility (EPR) and deposit return legislation. Through EPR programs, firms that manufacture packaging products provide financial or operational support to help collect, recycle, and manage packaging. By August 2024 the only states with EPR laws were California, Colorado, Maine, Oregon, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Washington, according to Source Intelligence.
- According to Packaging Dive, a recent report by the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) estimates the US PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottle collection rate in 2023 was 33%, up from 19% in 2022. The level of postconsumer recycled PET (rPET) used to make new bottles and jars in the US and Canada reached a record-high of 16.2% in 2023, up from 13.2% in 2022. NAPCO’s report also showed that prices for rPET rose in 2024 while virgin PET prices have trended downward. Rising recycling rates and rPET price broth suggests steady demand from consumer packaged goods manufacturers.
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