Reverse Logistics Credits: Comparison of different Business Models in the Rio de Janeiro State

Abstract

The implementation of packaging reverse logistics has been a major concern for the Brazilian government and the private sector. Consumer goods companies, which are largely responsible for generating this type of waste, do not have their own reverse logistics system and depend mainly on the existing recycling mechanism. Because of this, an environmental compensation system called reverse logistics credits (RLC) was created based on the certification of recirculated post-consumer packaging. This article presents the characterization of business models that operate in the RLC market, where descriptive research was carried out focusing on the comparison between them. It was discovered that historically, the return of waste as raw material for industry is strongly linked to the cooperatives business model, but aiming to fill some financial and structural gaps, the startups penetrate the market to meet the industry demand, ensuring the necessary volume and minimum standard of this service. Business associations operate similarly but based on the premise of exchanging services and goods for credits. The three independent models are unable to serve the market alone, characterized by the complexity of operating networks and particularities correlated to the waste quantity and diversity.