Arkansas plastics stretch farther

Northwest Arkansas’ plastic industry facilities helped earn the state several credits in a recent economic study by the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc.

Washington and Benton counties combine to house 22 plastic facilities that support 982 employees, according to Plastics Industry Trade Association records.

Including Northwest Arkansas, 161 facilities reside in Arkansas, employing 19,600 people, ranking the state at No. 23 for plastic industry employment.

Arkansas also received notation in the study as the sixth-fastest-growing state for plastics employment by increasing by 38 percent since 1994.

Plastics shipments in the state generated $3.1 billion in 1999, more than double the amount from 1994.