Sterile wrap recycling · Made in Nebraska
Hospitals throw away 250+ million pounds of clean plastic a year. We turn it into lumber.
PolyPath collects the blue sterile wrap surgical teams throw out before every operation. We track every pound and send it to be recycled into new products, starting right here in Nebraska.
The problem
Every surgery starts with a pile of plastic.
Surgical tools are wrapped in blue plastic to keep them sterile. The wrap gets opened and thrown away before the patient is even in the room. That means it's clean and recyclable, yet almost all of it ends up in a landfill.
- Clean: removed before the patient arrives, so it never touches blood or fluids
- Recyclable: made of #5 polypropylene
- A big share: about 19% of all surgical-services waste is sterile wrap (EPA estimate)
- Already sorted: it comes off the trays in one place in every OR
How it works
Four steps, tracked in our own app.
Collect
OR staff drop opened wrap into a PolyPath bag during room setup.
Log
Bags are weighed, photographed and logged in the PolyPath Track app.
Pick up
PolyPath collects bags marked "Ready for Pickup."
Recycle
Our partner Firstar Fiber in Omaha turns it into lumber.
Proven in a central Nebraska hospital
A 90-day pilot with zero disruption to surgery.
Where it goes
From landfill-bound to lumber.
Every bag on the left was headed for a landfill. Instead, Firstar Fiber in Omaha inspects and processes it into the boards on the right, made from 100% recycled sterile wrap.
Meet the founder
"Do no harm" shouldn't stop at the patient.
Connor Streit is a Kearney native who has spent years in and around Nebraska operating rooms. Before every case, he watched bags of clean blue wrap go into the trash. He started PolyPath to give hospitals a simple, reliable way to recycle it.
PolyPath LLC · Grand Island, Nebraska
Get involved
Help us bring PolyPath to every operating room in Nebraska.
We're growing beyond our first hospitals. Here's how you can help. Fill out the form below and Connor will be in touch.
- Invest in our next stage of growth
- Introduce us to a hospital or surgery center
- Partner on logistics, recycling or products made from recycled wrap
- Follow along and get updates