Attorney General Mayes Announces Settlement with Hefty® Parent Company Reynolds over Misleading Recycling Bags

PHOENIX – Attorney General Kris Mayes today announced a settlement with Reynolds Consumer Products, Inc. and Reynolds Consumer Products LLC (Reynolds), settling a lawsuit filed in August 2025 over Reynolds' misrepresentations that its Hefty® brand "Recycling" bags are recyclable when, in fact, they are not.

"Companies should not be able to exploit Arizonans' well-meaning desire to protect the environment," said Attorney General Mayes. "We won't allow companies to mislead consumers and imply products sold in our state are recyclable unless they can actually be recycled in Arizona."

The Complaint alleged that Reynolds, under its Hefty® brand, sold transparent blue and clear "Recycling" bags throughout Arizona with packaging suggesting the bags could be used for general recycling. In reality, these bags are not recyclable in Arizona and could cause otherwise-recyclable material placed inside them to be diverted to a landfill.

The bags could also become entangled in recycling facility equipment, forcing facility shutdowns. While other states have filed similar consumer fraud lawsuits and reached settlements with Reynolds — and Reynolds has made some incremental packaging changes — the company had never before removed the image of the bag containing recyclables or explicitly stated on the front of its packaging that the bags are not recyclable.

Under the Consent Judgment, Reynolds is prohibited from selling "recycling" bags unless they are accepted for recycling at a substantial majority of Arizona recycling facilities.

Reynolds must also redesign the packaging of its transparent clear and blue bags to remove any misleading images implying the bags can be used for curbside pickup or placed in municipal recycling bins, as shown below and in Exhibit A to the Consent Judgment.

This redesign will be implemented nationwide and will include removing recyclable contents from images of the clear or blue bags and clearly stating on the packaging: "These Bags Are Not Recyclable."

Reynolds will also pay $30,000 in restitution, $157,000 in a payment to the state, and $25,000 in costs and attorneys' fees.

Arizona consumers who purchased Reynolds' "Recycling" bags or transparent blue or clear bags should file a complaint here before October 1, 2026, to be considered for restitution.

This matter was handled by Division Chief Counsel Felecia Rotellini and Unit Chief Counsel Dylan Jones.

If you believe you have been the victim of consumer fraud, file a complaint at www.azag.gov/consumer. To request a complaint form, contact the Attorney General's Office in Phoenix at (602) 542-5763, in Tucson at (520) 628-6648, or outside the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas at (800) 352-8431.

A copy of the Consent Judgment (pending approval) is available here.