Establishment of the Consortium was announced July 21, 2020 by the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners with leading retailers https://www.closedlooppartners.com/closed-loop-partners-launches-groundbreaking-consortium-with-cvs-health-target-and-walmart-to-reinvent-the-plastic-retail-bag/ – The aim of the Consortium is to “… reinvent the single-use plastic retail bag, with the goal of identifying, testing and implementing viable design solutions and models that more sustainably serve the purpose of the current retail bag … Collectively, Consortium partners have committed more than $15 million to launch the Beyond the Bag Initiative … https://www.closedlooppartners.com/beyond-the-bag/ [which] convenes some of the largest and most influential retailers in the United States … Innovative design solutions to serve the function of today’s retail bag will be solicited … through the Consortium’s global Innovation Challenge https://www.openideo.com/challenge-briefs/beyond-the-bag-challenge … [which] invites innovators, suppliers, designers and problem-solvers to submit their ideas for game-changing sustainable bag solutions …” #PlasticWaste #PlasticBag #Recycling #SingleUsePlastic