This article was originally posted September 22, 2025 on LinkedIn. See the LinkedIn article here.
As Members of Parliament return to Ottawa, Canada has a chance to refocus its approach to plastics and petrochemicals – grounding policy in practical solutions, collaboration, and innovation instead of politics. Prime Minister Carney’s commitment to fresh ideas, perspectives, and energy are welcomed by industry. Instinctively rewarding innovation is how Canada will strengthen its economic resilience and global competitiveness.
Many Canadians aren’t aware Canada’s plastics and chemistry industry contributes more than $72 billion annually to our economy and directly supports 90,000 good Canadian jobs. With major hubs in Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec, Canada has the industrial infrastructure to transform its oil and gas resources into higher value products that fuel Canadian industries and provide everyday necessities like food packaging to prevent spoilage.
With that home grown economic advantage comes a responsibility for governments, regulators, industry, and the scientific community to work together to protect our environment from plastic waste. But the current patchwork of local, provincial, and federal government policies and recycling infrastructure is simply not working. While often well-intended, this policy mess creates inefficiency and endless confusion for the average Canadian just trying to do the right thing. And it represents a missed opportunity to build a strong circular economy rooted in less waste and higher value.
The time has never been more important to get this right. A provincially controlled but unified national standard for recyclable packaging, paired with investment in domestic infrastructure and R&D, would advance Canada’s position as a global leader in the circular economy, reduce plastic waste, and serve as a domestic engine of economic growth and self-reliance.
Implementing clear standards and producer-funded programs will ensure shrink wrap is handled the same way whether you’re in Halifax or Calgary, unlocking economies of scale in recycling. With common rules and goals, companies can confidently invest in packaging design and recycling facilities knowing the system is consistent and predictable.
While plastics have been vilified in environmental debates, the problem isn’t the product itself but what we do with it after use. For example, approximately one-third of all food produced globally is wasted each year, but high-performance packaging can prevent this – keeping food fresher for longer. We need to stop treating plastic products as the problem and instead fix the systems that fail to capture their full value.
Developing better recycling processes, advanced polymers, or AI-driven manufacturing efficiencies are critical to Canada’s productivity and self-reliance. Ensuring such projects qualify for Scientific Research and Experimental Development tax credits – or even enhancing credits for initiatives that drive circular economy outcomes – will spur more made-in-Canada innovation such as ready-to-recycle resins and the accompanying recycling infrastructure.
Canadian industry is eager to do our part. We are ready to invest but need federal
leadership to set the right conditions. One powerful lever is innovation incentives. If an organization is experimenting with a new chemical recycling technique or a digital system to optimize plastic collection, that work should be encouraged through our innovation tax system.
At the same time, policymakers should be aware of policy overreach that unintentionally hampers progress. For example, the goal of the proposed Federal Plastics Registry – tracking plastic from production to disposal – sounds sensible, but the current design would generate more paperwork than real environmental benefit.
Federal and provincial momentum to remove internal trade barriers should extend to sensible regulation that allows Canada to add value to our natural resources and create products in high demand at home and abroad. With government, business and communities working together, we can make Canada a global leader in both plastics innovation and recovery.
Our message is simple: it’s not time to abandon the Canadian plastic industry – it’s time to work together to reshape the value chain. Instead of demonizing a material that has improved our quality of life in countless ways, let’s work together to fix the systems that manage plastics and unleash Canadian ingenuity on the world stage. For the sake of our environment and economy, we can no longer afford not to.
Rocky Vermani is the Senior Vice President, Innovation and Sustainability, responsible for building out NOVA Chemicals’ sustainability initiative roadmaps and advocating for strong policy to continue unlocking leading-edge solutions for a sustainable future.