Meta will pay a Massachusetts recycling startup for the right to claim reductions in carbon emissions, under a deal announced Tuesday that is meant to help fund the company's first commercial plant.
MacroCycle, based in Cambridge, has spent three years developing a process that removes contaminants from plastic waste, producing recycled material the company says is more attractive to buyers. The startup claims its method produces 80% fewer carbon emissions than virgin PET, the plastic commonly used in bottles, containers and textiles. MacroCycle was a Top 20 finalist at the 2025 Startup Battlefield competition held at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco.
The agreement gives Meta the rights to the avoided emissions, which the company can count against its own carbon footprint. That footprint has grown sharply during the AI boom. A Meta spokesperson confirmed it is the first deal of its kind for the company. Payments for the instruments, known as environmental attribute credits, will give MacroCycle revenue that can support construction of the plant, which will be built in the U.S.
Meta's interest extends beyond the credits. The company wants to help establish a market for low-carbon materials such as plastics, which appear in its supply chain in packaging and hardware. As that market expands, wider availability of those materials should help reduce Meta's overall carbon footprint, according to the company.
MacroCycle says its demonstration plant will be able to produce 5,000 metric tons of recycled plastic per year. Its process dissolves and purifies PET found in various waste streams, including textiles, which have one of the lowest recycling rates of any material at 0.5%. The method loops plastic polymers back on themselves into rings called macrocycles, the source of the company's name. Solvents wash away contaminants and leave the macrocycles, which are then opened so the polymers can be relinked into higher-quality plastic that is indistinguishable from new material.
Using solvents rather than heat is the main reason for the energy savings, which should also bring lower costs. MacroCycle aims to make recycled textiles domestically at prices that can compete with overseas suppliers. U.S. textile manufacturing employment has fallen 85% over the last 25 years.
MacroCycle is working to line up buyers for the material from its first plant. Co-founder and CEO Stewart Peña Feliz said the Meta deal should make later agreements with other companies easier to reach. He added that future plants will be able to produce 50,000 metric tons per year.
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