Recyclable materials | An opponent of the deposit on the board of Recyc-Québec

The appointment to the Recyc-Québec board of directors of a leader of the Agropur cooperative, who openly opposes the extension of the deposit to milk containers, raises eyebrows in the environmental community.

Jean-Thomas Léveillé
The Press

The Legault government has named Stéphanie Benoit an “independent member” of the board of directors of the Quebec Society for Recovery and Recycling (Recyc-Québec), presenting her as manager of two agricultural companies.

However, Ms. Benoit is also vice-president of the Agropur dairy cooperative, which has been leading a public campaign for several months against the extension of the deposit to milk containers, which was not mentioned in the notice of appointment published at the beginning of the month. , but as specified on the Recyc-Québec website.

“It raises questions and we would like to have answers,” he told The Press Karel Ménard, Director General of the Quebec Common Front for Ecological Waste Management (FCQGED).

“This is a person who is vice-president of a major agricultural cooperative, who founded a coalition so that the deposit is not applied to milk containers, and there she is appointed to the board of a government agency. who is there to promote [cette] instruction,” he said.

Stéphanie Benoit will have to withdraw from discussions on the deposit on the board of Recyc-Québec, because it will be in conflict of interest, estimates Marc-André Viau, director of government relations at Équiterre.

The presence of companies at Recyc-Québec’s table is desirable for the organization to achieve its objectives, but Agropur’s “frontal” opposition is a problem in its eyes.

Open opposition

The extension of the deposit to all beverage containers from 100 milliliters to 2 liters, which is now scheduled to come into force in the spring of 2023, is arousing opposition from Agropur.

The dairy cooperative has launched with the Council of Dairy Industrialists of Quebec and the Food Processing Council of Quebec the coalition “My milk in the bin”, which campaigns in particular on social networks.

It states on its website that the extension of the deposit “will cause significant inconvenience for consumers, [qui devront] store and accumulate empty containers, bring them back to an official drop-off point that can be located up to 10 km from the house”.

The government “is under a lot of pressure” from various groups, including Agropur, to delay or limit the expansion of the deposit, worries Karel Ménard.

“They met the minister’s office [de l’Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, Benoit Charette]deputies, they have been very, very active for two months, ”he said.

“We know that our waste production is problematic and that our production of recycled materials is problematic,” adds Marc-André Viau. We must tackle these problems. »

The Press tried to reach Stéphanie Benoit, in vain; Agropur did not call back The Presswhile Recyc-Québec and Minister Charette’s office were unable to offer any immediate explanations.