Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis

What Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis does

ANCAT (Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis) is a Brazilian non-profit civil association founded in 2000 and headquartered in São Paulo (with a projects office in Brasília). It is the national representative body for recyclable-material waste pickers (catadores) in Brazil, organized as a 51–100-person staff association that supports more than 5,000 catadores across 480 cooperatives in all 27 Brazilian states, with technical teams present in 26 of those states.

The organization operates a portfolio of programs rather than a single product. Its core platform is Reciclar pelo Brasil — described as Brazil's largest inclusive reverse-logistics platform, launched in October 2017 in partnership with Coca-Cola Brasil and Ambev (and later extended to Nestlé, PepsiCo, Tetra Pak, Danone, BRF, Cargill, Novelis, Vigor, Arcor, Ajinomoto, and others) — which connects member cooperatives with companies for PNRS (National Solid Waste Policy) compliance. Adjacent programs include Cataforte (cooperative strategic-planning advisory, funded by Fundação Banco do Brasil and BNDES), Conexão Cidadã (regional social-inclusion services across São Paulo, Brasília, Belém, Belo Horizonte, and Curitiba, supported by Instituto Heineken), Programa Valoriza (autonomous catador inclusion, funded by Fundación Avina), Atlas Brasileiro da Reciclagem (a national recycling-mapping platform), ExpoCatadores (Brazil's largest waste-picker industry event), ANCAT CONECTA (work-opportunity matching), and the Pra>Frente Play – Se Liga, Recicla educational platform co-developed with Novelis and Fundação Dom Cabral (2023).

ANCAT's business model is non-commercial grant and partnership funded: it does not sell to its primary beneficiaries (catadores and cooperatives) and generates no disclosed revenue from selling pricing tiers. Income derives from corporate ESG/PNRS partnerships, federal and state development-bank grants (BNDES, FBB, Caixa Econômica Federal Socioenvironmental Fund), international philanthropy (Fundación Avina, Fundación Moisés Bertoni, Instituto Heineken), and event sponsorship. Its customers are therefore a hybrid: (i) the 480 cooperatives and 5,000+ workers it serves directly; (ii) corporations seeking PNRS compliance and ESG legitimacy via Reciclar pelo Brasil; and (iii) federal, state, and municipal government bodies implementing selective collection with social inclusion. In 2026, ANCAT became the only waste-picker association seated on the Brazilian Sustainable Taxonomy Interinstitutional Committee's Consultative Committee, and the CNJ approved a national norm recommending courts pay cooperatives for environmental services — both moves that extend its influence from operations into policy monetization.

Name

Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis

Legal name

Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis

Website

https://ancat.org.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

ANCAT is a São Paulo-based Brazilian non-profit civil association founded in 2000 that represents more than 5,000 recyclable-material waste pickers across 480 cooperatives in all 27 Brazilian states, operating inclusive reverse-logistics, cooperative professionalization, and policy advocacy programs under the National Solid Waste Policy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Recycling and Waste Management Cooperative Services

NAICS

Waste Management and Remediation Services (562), Waste Collection (5621), All Other Miscellaneous Waste Management Services (562998)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Waste, Recycling & Reusable Transport Item (RTI) Retrieval Routes (TLAAAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Missed Pickup, On-Call & Supplemental Route Services (BPALAAAJ), Industrial Non-hazardous Waste Collection & Hauling (EUAIAGAB), Compactor, Container & Roll-off Services (Rental, Service & Logistics) (EUAIAGAC)

Keywords

• Waste picker services
• Reverse logistics programs
• Recycling cooperative support
• Social inclusion recycling
• Circular economy advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

São Paulo

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Platform Services and Technical Assistance: ANCAT operates the Reciclar pelo Brasil platform, which facilitates reverse logistics partnerships between waste picker cooperatives and companies. The platform aims to increase recycled waste quantities, expand revenue for cooperatives, and improve income and quality of life for waste pickers.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ANCAT is a non-profit civil association that provides technical assistance, capacity building, and platform-mediated reverse logistics services to waste picker cooperatives across Brazil. Its portfolio of programs (Reciclar pelo Brasil, Cataforte, Conexão Cidadã, Programa Valoriza) connects cooperatives with corporate partners, government agencies, and foundations to professionalize the recycling value chain and improve the income and working conditions of recyclable material collectors. The association also organizes ExpoCatadores, the largest national event for the sector, and operates the Atlas Brasileiro da Reciclagem mapping platform.

Product overview

ANCAT (Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis) is a non-profit civil association that represents and supports recyclable material collectors in Brazil. Rather than offering a unified software product, ANCAT operates a portfolio of programs and platforms focused on professionalization, inclusion, and advocacy for the collector category. The core offerings include the Reciclar pelo Brasil platform (inclusive reverse logistics), the Conexão Cidadã program (regional social support), the Cataforte program (strategic advisory), the Programa Valoriza (autonomous collector support), the Atlas Brasileiro da Reciclagem (mapping platform), and the ExpoCatadores (annual event). These programs work together to advance the professional development, income generation, and social inclusion of recyclable material collectors across Brazil.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Reciclar pelo Brasil A platform for inclusive reverse logistics that connects companies and associations to support and professionalize cooperatives and associations of recyclable material collectors, aiming to increase recycled waste volumes, expand cooperative revenue, and improve income and quality of life for waste pickers.
• Conexão Cidadã A program providing support, training, EPI distribution, and social inclusion services to recyclable material collectors, with regional implementations in São Paulo, Brasília, Belém, Belo Horizonte, and Curitiba.
• Cataforte A strategic advisory program for cooperatives and associations of recyclable material collectors, providing strategic planning, capacity building, and infrastructure assessment support.
• Programa Valoriza An initiative to strengthen waste picker cooperatives and promote productive, economic, and social inclusion of autonomous collectors, with financing from Fundación Avina.
• Atlas Brasileiro da Reciclagem A platform that maps recycling activities across Brazil to understand how cooperatives function and the average volume of recyclables processed per year.
• ExpoCatadores The largest event for recyclable material collectors in Brazil, bringing together debates, lectures, and cultural activities for the sector, with the 10th edition held in São Paulo.
• ANCAT CONECTA A program designed to connect waste pickers with concrete work opportunities, income generation, and strengthening of their professional activities.
• Pra>Frente Play – Se Liga, Recicla An educational platform launched in partnership with Novelis and Fundação Dom Cabral to provide training and professional development content for recyclable material collectors.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 5,000 waste pickers represented across 480 cooperatives
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Reciclar pelo Brasil Partners (Coca-Cola Brasil, Ambev, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Tetra Pak, Danone, BRF, Cargill, Novelis, Vigor, Arcor, Ajinomoto, D.Pauli, Dr. Oetker, Coca-Cola)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 October 2017The Reciclar pelo Brasil platform, launched in October 2017, is a collaboration between ANCAT and major companies including Coca-Cola Brasil, Ambev, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Tetra Pak, Danone, BRF, Cargill, Novelis, Vigor, Arcor, and Ajinomoto. The platform aims to regularize, improve infrastructure, and professionalize waste picker cooperatives to fulfill Brazil's National Solid Waste Policy (PNRS) obligations.
• AmbiparmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmbipar and ANCAT partnered in August 2024 on the 'Circular Project' to professionalize recycling cooperatives in Brazil, structuring cooperatives and ensuring dignified working conditions for more waste pickers while increasing recycling rates.
• Novelis and Fundação Dom CabralmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerANCAT launched the Pra>Frente Play – Se Liga, Recicla teaching platform in partnership with Novelis and Fundação Dom Cabral at ANCAT's new headquarters, providing educational content for waste pickers.
• Fundación Moisés Bertoni (Paraguay)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRepresentatives of Fundación Moisés Bertoni from Paraguay visited ANCAT's headquarters in São Paulo in March 2026 to strengthen international partnership in defense of waste pickers and recycling.
• Conatrec (Confederação Nacional de Cooperativas de Trabalho e Produção de Recicláveis)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerANCAT and Conatrec maintain a strategic partnership for logistics reverse work and signed a cooperation agreement at Waste Expo Brasil to pursue improvements, especially in tax matters for waste picker entities.
• Sindinesfa (Sindicato das Empresas de Sucata de Ferro e Aço)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerANCAT signed a cooperation agreement with Sindinesfa for the promotion of commercial activities, uniting scrap metal processors with waste picker cooperatives.
• ABAL (Associação Brasileira do Alumínio)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerANCAT and ABAL signed a technical cooperation agreement in August 2025 to promote waste picker professionalization and strengthen aluminum recycling in Brazil.
• MNCR (Movimento Nacional dos Catadores de Materiais Recicláveis)coreOthersANCAT works closely with MNCR, which represents individual waste pickers. The two organizations frequently co-organize events and policy advocacy efforts including the Natal dos Catadores celebration and the UniCatadores national union.
• Rock in RiominorGTM or Marketing PartnerANCAT served as a sustainability supplier for Rock in Rio events, providing waste picker inclusion services during large-scale music festivals.
• ExpoCatadores Event PartnerscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerANCAT organizes ExpoCatadores, Brazil's largest event for waste pickers, which receives support from various companies and organizations. The 10th edition was held in São Paulo with international participation.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA): Global alliance of NGOs promoting zero-waste and recycling systems. Comparable as an ecosystem player in formal/informal recycling-policy advocacy; not a direct competitor but a peer in the same policy and funding ecosystem.
• Fundación Moisés Bertoni (Paraguay): Paraguayan environmental NGO that visited ANCAT HQ in March 2026 to study the model. Comparable as a peer NGO working on waste-picker inclusion in the Southern Cone, with potential future partnership overlap.

Regional players

• Red de Recicladores de Bogotá: Colombian waste-picker association representing ~20,000 recicladores de oficio in Bogotá. Closest geographic comparator for ANCAT's model at city/national scale in another Latin American capital, with similar social-inclusion mandate.
• Asociación de Recicladores de Bolivia (ARBOL) / Red Nacional de Recicladores de Bolivia: Bolivian waste-picker national network with comparable cooperative-organizing, capacity-building, and policy-advocacy function, serving as a smaller-scale peer in the Andean region.

Direct peers

• WIEGO (Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing): Global network focused on informal workers including waste pickers, with similar advocacy, capacity-building, and statistics functions. Operates the Global Recicladores network, the direct international counterpart to ANCAT's mission.
• Confederação Nacional de Cooperativas de Trabalho e Produção de Recicláveis (Conatrec): National confederation representing recycling cooperatives on logistics-reverse and tax issues. Signed cooperation agreement with ANCAT at Waste Expo Brasil, making it a structurally comparable federation with overlapping membership and policy mandate.
• Movimento Nacional dos Catadores de Materiais Recicláveis (MNCR): Brazil's other major national waste-picker movement, focused on individual informal pickers rather than cooperatives. ANCAT and MNCR frequently co-organize events (Natal dos Catadores) and share policy-advocacy functions, making them the closest direct peer.

Broad incumbents

• Compromisso Empresarial para Reciclagem (Cempre): Brazilian business association for recycling and municipal solid waste, connecting corporates to the recycling chain. Comparable to ANCAT as a convening/facilitating platform but representing the demand (corporate) side rather than the supply (cooperative) side.
• Asociação Brasileira do Alumínio (ABAL): Brazilian aluminum industry association that signed a 2025 technical cooperation agreement with ANCAT. Comparable as a sector-shaping industry body and recycling-market intermediary, though focused on a single material stream.

Emerging players

• Fundación Avina: Latin American foundation that finances Programa Valoriza at ANCAT. Operates regional recycling and inclusive-economy programs with overlapping grantees; comparable as a peer ecosystem-builder rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ancatnacional
• YouTubeyoutube.com/ancatnacional
• Facebookfacebook.com/ancatnacional
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ancatnacional
• Instagraminstagram.com/ancatnacional

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Associação Nacional dos Catadores e Catadoras de Materiais Recicláveis