Peak performance

The waste industry continued its strong performance in 2023 thanks to an active mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market as interest in sustainability continues to grow.

Across the industry, demand for sustainability-driven waste solutions has grown, according to research from Solomon Partners, a New York-based financial advisory firm. This has led to investments in recycling facilities, renewable energy plants, organics composting and anaerobic digestion.

Increasingly, organizations are viewing sustainability as a value-creation opportunity and are taking a proactive stance on sustainability strategy, according to an “Environmental Services Insider” report from Brown Gibbons Lang & Co. (BGL), a Cleveland-based investment bank and financial advisory firm.

Investor activity was high in 2023, with significant capital inflow boosting acquisition activity in the environmental services sector, BGL reports, adding that investors have been attracted to the market’s stable demand. That demand is being driven by a favorable regulatory climate, governmental funding tailwinds and a sustainability imperative, according to BGL.

This demand also has contributed to the growth of the companies on Waste Today’s list of the largest haulers, which is based on companies’ 2023 revenues.

In 2023, the top 10 haulers shuffled a bit after U.S. Ecology, formerly the No. 8 hauler, was acquired by Republic in 2022. Waste Pro USA jumped into the top 10, moving up several spots from its previous ranking at No. 11 on our 2021 list to No. 8 this year.

Waste Today’s Largest Haulers List seeks to offer a snapshot of the market as of the end of last year.

About the list

The editors of Waste Today compiled this year’s Largest Haulers List by combing through public records, surveying companies in the publication’s database and soliciting feedback via the publication’s website and e-newsletter.

For the few companies that submitted their revenues for 2021 but did not submit updated 2023 revenues for the latest iteration of the list, we chose to include estimated revenue figures based on previous data.

Thank you to all the companies that participated this year. Your participation helps us create a list that most accurately reflects the industry.

List highlights

Highlights from this year’s Largest Haulers List:

• Companies on our list generated a total of $68.3 billion in revenue in 2023. Of that total, $63.6 billion came from the 10 largest companies.
• The companies on our list represent 21 different states, plus Canada.
• The states with the most haulers on our list include New Jersey at six, followed by Texas with five and California and Florida at four each.
• Four Canadian companies, Ontario-based Waste Connections, GFL and Environmental 360 Solutions and Quebec-based Ricova International Inc., made the list.

A final note

Defining the term “hauler” is never straightforward. While many on the list are typical residential and commercial waste hauling companies, others offer a plethora of other special waste, recycling and environmental services. Waste Today has chosen to define haulers simply as those companies that own their own vehicles to collect waste and transport it for processing. However, this list does not include companies that solely transport recyclables, hazardous waste or medical waste.

That being said, many revenue figures include additional services, such as landfill operations, recycling processing and others beyond hauling.

If your company was not included on this list and you wish to participate in the next iteration, reach out to Waste Today Managing Editor Shelley Mann at smann@gie.net or Associate Editor Haley Rischar at hrischar@gie.net.