Sustainable Packaging with Cory Connors presented by Atlantic Packaging
Join industry leaders, innovators, and changemakers as we explore the future of packaging through the lens of sustainability. Hosted by Cory Connors, an industry expert with over 25 years of experience, and presented by Atlantic Packaging, the leader in innovative sustainable solutions, we dive into what’s working (and what’s not) from cutting-edge materials to circular design strategies that can reduce waste and protect our planet.
Each episode blends real data, expert insights, and a dose of fun to help you stay informed and inspired. Whether you're in the packaging industry or simply passionate about sustainability, this podcast is your weekly go-to resource for making smarter, greener choices.
Thank you again to the amazing Alexis Taylor and team at the USDA including Andrew Stephens for making this happen!
The projects will target such cross-cutting issues as:
Addressing the implications of new and forthcoming regulations related to plastics and packaging for fresh produce and other specialty crop products;
Helping U.S. exporters identify potential export markets and better understand the mechanics of exporting;
Assisting U.S. exporters with navigating foreign standards, certifications, and import requirements, including maximum residue limits (MRLs) for pesticides used on specialty crops; and
Helping importing countries adopt international standards and harmonize import regulations in order to facilitate trade.
ASCE projects are intended to benefit an entire industry or product category rather than a specific company. They are not intended to directly export products, identify specific foreign buyers, support market promotion activities, or deal with tariffs and related trade policy issues.
I'm here to help you make your packaging more sustainable! Reach out today and I'll get back to you asap.
This podcast is an independent production and the podcast production is an original work of the author. All rights of ownership and reproduction are retained—copyright 2022.
Cory Connors:
Welcome to Sustainable Packaging with Cory Connors. Today's guest is a very special person that works with our government in, efforts to help us be more sustainable in many ways, but I'm very honored to introduce Alexis Taylor. She is an American Agriculture Policy Advisor, who is serving as Undersecretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs since December 2022. She formerly served as director of the Oregon Department of Agriculture Wow, that's quite a title, my friend. Well done.
Alexis Taylor:
It is. It is a long title.
Cory Connors:
Yes. welcome. Thank you for making some time. I know you're at the University of Wisconsin Stout, which I was just at a few weeks ago, speaking to their students as well. First of all, how are you?
Alexis Taylor:
I'm great. Yeah. Thanks. Thanks for, having me on today to talk about, sustainable packaging. It's such an interesting topic and I think fast moving topic, not just in the United States, but globally. So I was really excited when I heard there was a whole podcast dedicated to this.
Cory Connors:
Yes. Believe it or not, this podcast and people really are interested in it. It's exciting. It affects us all every day. And I think that's what, what you're very aware of at your position in the government. And, but let's talk a little bit about you, tell us about yourself. How did you get into, agriculture and international trade as a career?
Alexis Taylor:
Well, I like to say I come by it, naturally. So I grew up on a farm in Iowa. the farm has been in my family for well over 160 years this year, or well over 160 years, probably nearing on, 163. and, it was a really standard. Iowa farm corn, soybeans, and then a small beef cattle operation. but I, growing up, even though I was tied to agriculture, I never really thought I was going to work in agriculture. when I graduated from college, I moved to DC and I started working on the hill. And was working for an Iowa member, who was on the house ag committee and I learned they do these things called farm bills every 5 years. and, suddenly I was working on things that I grew up hearing about around the dinner table, right? Disaster assistance, conservation programs. Crop insurance, things like that. and that really, had me fall back into, agriculture. And I've spent over 20 years, now working in, agricultural policy and trade policy.
Cory Connors:
Fascinating. And it sounds like a great background. And you've also served in the military. I wanted to thank you for your service.
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah, thank you for that. somewhere in between, high school, college and moving to D. C. I spent eight years in the military, all total. So
Cory Connors:
a very impressive background. So we'll get into the connection to packaging here soon, but let's talk a little bit about, more about international trade. what's, what does that entail for you?
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah. I oversee, the former On agricultural service and the U. S. Codex office, and the U. S. Codex office, works with the Codex Alimentarius Commission, which is an international organization that sets food safety standards that helps facilitate trade. It's actually a very small team we have at USDA, but it's a U. S. government wide effort, but it's critical work that they do. So, to make sure things like. very much. maximum residue limits for a certain chemical or pesticide product is based upon science. so trade can happen, but also protect human health and consumer health in countries all over the world on the foreign agricultural side. we, FAS is what we called ourselves. And we are the lead international agency. for the U. S. Department of agriculture, so we really do a lot of work with trading partners on trade policy on knocking down barriers to U. S. food and agricultural products, all over the world. and then, we also work on some food security and capacity building programs. USA. I. D. is the large entity in the U. S. government that does that. Most of those, but we have a couple of small ones at USDA that are really critically important. and then we also do trade policy and trade promotion. So I lead trade missions all over the world. I was just in India with 130 Americans in our delegation size. These are food and ag businesses who are interested in selling and exporting to the Indian market. And we help match them up with buyers in that market. and 1 of the things that we do is really help us food and ag open doors, whether they be trade policy barriers, technical barriers, and make or making connections with exporters in those markets. And I don't sell 1, bushel of corn when I go to another country, but I hope I open the door. So those industry, those farmers can walk through it and make those sales.
Cory Connors:
I have a personal connection to this. We were talking a little bit about that before we started, with my father and mother in law, being farmers in Junction City, Oregon. so this really hits home for me and, very excited, about the work that you do. And I can tell you, they appreciate what you do. they're often talking about, oh, we have a new opportunity to, try this new, Grain or whatever the case may be, and they're very appreciative of that. But, you're at the University of Wisconsin, stout, which I was just out a few weeks ago, speaking to all those amazing students and touring that awesome facility. can you tell us about that experience and what you were doing there?
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah, so it was great. So, this afternoon, I toured stout school of packaging, and I met with some students and faculty and really learned what they're doing in the world of sustainable packaging. Packaging, and you might say, well, you just are talked about your work internationally. Why are you focused on packaging? Right? what we're seeing more and more trading partners adopt and move towards are sustainable packaging requirements. Trading partners by policy in their country are trying to move away from single use packaging and it's really important in the specialty crop sector in particular, because when you think about, say. For any consumer who buys berries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, they come in these plastic containers, which are known as clamshells. Those are designed specifically for transportation of those berries for extending the shelf life of those berries as long as possible. And when you're loading. Berries, a highly perishable product to go to a market in another country has to go, fly oftentimes across the ocean to a country in Asia or to Europe or to India, where I just was all of that research in that packaging is so important. And so. As countries move towards new sustainable packaging requirements, that could absolutely have an impact on food safety on the viability of and the longevity that those specialty crops are eligible for. And so being able to see some of the research today in development today, that's already going on, is really exciting and actually. One of the things that was great, too, that I saw is how the University of Stout, Wisconsin Stout, is taking a byproduct from cranberries that has almost no value today. This, when they juice, cranberries, they get this dry pumice and it's going to compost today. So very little value to that into those farmers. They're developing and working on taking that pumice and creating sustainable packaging, even creating clear plastic film that they can use in, like, our cheese packages that we buy, and just trying to do the research with consumers on. How clear it is, or how cloudy certain recyclable content is, and how it feels, how it sounds. It's really interesting to see how they're tying the work with, the businesses, the, the end point who are selling to consumers. So the grocery store change of what they're asking for, and what consumers are saying they're willing to pay for. What if it costs more what they're looking for visually. How it feels in their hands, those types of things. So it's great to be able to meet with some students who are doing this work.
Cory Connors:
I am totally impressed by those students and by the faculty there. wow. I couldn't believe what they had available to them, actual machines, actual packaging, industrial machines to, to set up and to practice on and to learn from. I sure wish I would have had that opportunity as a student.
Alexis Taylor:
I was really impressed at the work that they're doing and how high tech it is as well. Yeah.
Cory Connors:
Yeah. They didn't even tell me about that program with the cranberries. I wish I would have learned about that there. That's really cool and exciting, frankly. I think that's the future is learning how to use our waste to be more sustainable in different ways.
Alexis Taylor:
And, one of the things we've really prioritized at the U. S. Department of Agriculture is how do we expand the economic viability of our farmers? And we need to find new revenue streams. And there's nothing better than taking something that is essentially a waste product today and turning into a viable revenue stream. And so that's why it was so exciting to me.
Cory Connors:
Yes. Yeah. Well said. Well, you also have an exciting announcement to make, that you spoke about when you were there, a new USDA program on packaging innovation. can you tell us about that?
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah. So last fall we stood up a new initiative and it's called the assisting specialty crop exports initiative and we are government. So everything gets a name and then it gets an acronym. So we're going to call it, we're calling it the ASCE initiative. Yeah. All right. As part of that initiative, what we announced today is, the first tranche. So we've set aside a hundred million dollars, to really, as the name says, help specialty crop exports. there are some unique challenges with specialty crop exports, I think on the perishability on, some of those MRL challenges that, I talked about that we work on. but one in particular is around sustainable packaging. I, as I mentioned, countries all over the world are starting to go towards a move away from single use plastics in fruit and vegetable. We talked about how that is highly designed for those products. And so, as countries like Canada. As markets like the European Union, as we in the United States are talking about single use plastics as well, and lowering plastic pollution, how can we as government help support our specialty crop sector that has some unique challenges really be able to, continue to meet market demand. And so 1 of the things we're doing today is we've announced 5Million of the 1st 20Million that we are rolling out today is towards sustainable packaging. And so we have a notice of funding opportunity available. it's open for the next 60 days, and we will be looking for partners in the private sector in research entities. Universities like UW stout could apply to really help develop and then move to commercialization. Some of these sustainable packaging to support specialty crops and ultimately help them continue to meet these export demands. Now, your listeners who are in the sustainable packaging world, so they probably know a lot more than I do, but they might not know what a specialty crop is. so it is fruit and fresh fruit and vegetables, right? We all, that's an easy one, but there are some other crops in there that are pretty interesting. So. tree nuts. So you think almonds or walnuts, pecans, they're all special defined as specialty crops in the United States. and then we're in Wisconsin today and ginseng, which Wisconsin almost has the entire production of ginseng in the United States is based here in Wisconsin. And that's a pretty unique specialty crop.
Cory Connors:
I had no idea. That's amazing. in Oregon, where I'm from, we talk about hazelnuts a lot. And I know you're aware of that as in your former role. That's amazing. So anybody that's in the packaging research or design or who would you recommend apply for this kind of funds?
Alexis Taylor:
Well, I would maybe direct folks to go to website. and to go look at that notice of funding because all the details will be there for that kind of 5M dollars that we have announced in the sustainable packaging space. We also have 4 other projects. not targeted to the packaging that we've also rolled out. And, there are probably some different requirements for who is considered an eligible entity to apply. So encourage everybody to go check that out. There'll be more information online.
Cory Connors:
That's amazing. when can people start applying? Is it right away?
Alexis Taylor:
Right away. so it opened today. it will be open for 60 days. and so we look forward to just the variety of projects that we may and proposals we may get. and then we hope to make some funding announcements by the fall with the decisions.
Cory Connors:
that's really exciting news. I'm, really impressed with, you and the team at the USDA. I've worked with Andrew Stevens for several years. And, what you're doing is, really, making a difference and having an impact, on the world of sustainable packaging and in sustainability in general. So well done.
Alexis Taylor:
Well, I think it's, I appreciate that. I think it's important as we try to, It's good for all of us, right to move towards more sustainable packaging. So, just as consumers ourselves, right? We know, as people who live on this planet, we want to do right here by here, but we also want to help our agricultural community as well meet some of these unique challenges. And I think that's the role that government can really play. And the federal government can really play in this space is how do we help bring some resources. To help all of the industry advance some of these technologies, because this is where we're heading. It's where everywhere in the world is going to head and we aren't there yet necessarily on all of the research on all of the development on these products being commercialized to probably meet how quickly these requirements are going to be coming from trading partners. And so it's really important, I think, for us to be supporting folks on the ground to make these investments to bring these products to the market as quickly as possible.
Cory Connors:
Very well said with the advent of extended producer responsibility and laws that are changing quickly. I think we all need to be prepared for these changes and get out in front of them. And it sounds like what the work you're doing is going to allow that. So thank you for that work. Thank you for your efforts. And we do appreciate it. So, how will this program be implemented? For the people that do receive the grants.
Alexis Taylor:
Yes. so I think, what we're hoping to do is, provide these 5Million dollars. it will be over multiple years. So we'll be funding activities over multiple years, we're going to be standing up a sustainable packaging, innovation lab, and the funding will go to this new lab. But really, the point is going to be that then they will be doing sub awards and sub grants. So we can hit a variety of different. Packaging challenges, that are going on for especially crops. and the export and their, the uniqueness that they have in targeting these exports. So it also allows us to do probably very small projects and very small grants. So, we talk some about ginseng and how unique that is to Wisconsin and how small it is, but important to a state like Wisconsin and all of us consumers who enjoy ginseng. but that would allow. people and companies and researchers who want to target the smallest commodity to be able to tap into these funds as well.
Cory Connors:
It's so exciting. And, at Orora packaging just launched a sustainable design lab as well. And we, we know how impactful this can be, if done correctly. So we would be here to support that effort for you and your team and very exciting. Yeah,
Alexis Taylor:
great. Thanks, Corey.
Cory Connors:
Let's talk a little bit about, how do people get in touch with you? Is it just the website? Is there other social medias or things like that, that they can reach out to?
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah. so we do at USDA, we have Instagram account. We have a, an X account. the foreign agricultural service also has an X account. And so you can follow us there as well. and then of course the website is where we have all of our information. And for the ACE program, I gave you the website broadly for USDA, but for the ACE program, it's aceadminatusda. gov. and it's A S C E. A D M I N at USDA. gov.
Cory Connors:
I'll put those in the show notes so people can easily just click on them. just scroll up if you're listening on your cell phone and you can just tap on those and get right to the website.
Alexis Taylor:
Yeah, that's great. Thank you.
Cory Connors:
Thank you, Alexis Taylor. Really appreciate you and your wisdom and what you're doing for our country and our world. Thank you.
Alexis Taylor:
Well, thank you, Corey. And thanks for the work you're doing in sustainable packaging. thanks for the opportunity to highlight this, initiative and funding opportunity we have. It's like a great kind of nexus of where our world at USDA and for your podcast, collide with all of your listeners. And so we're really excited to be able to come on and share some of this. So thanks so much for the interest.
Cory Connors:
Yeah, we really appreciate it. A lot of times I'm asked on panels. What do we do? How do we do this together? And many people are almost begging for oversight to say Rather than having 50 different laws in the US. Why don't we have one and I think that's it's something that we can talk about someday Together, I hope, and, how we have national, things that will all work for everyone. but there's so many positive changes coming every day, in this space that, we'll have to keep everyone informed about them. So thank you.
