The pictures you are looking at were sent from the PET mill and HD mill within two weeks of each other.
The recycling center that put the opaque orange bottles in the PET bales did have the basics correct that the bottles were PET. BUT because you can not see through them – they have been dyed to a level that makes them no longer of value to the PET processor. These bales were down graded and paid at a lesser price.
The recycling center that got the same bottles and decided that because they could not see through them – understandably put them in the HD colored bales. All of their colored HD bales were rejected.
Ultimately this is a manufacturing problem that needs to be addressed by the recycled plastics associations. In the meantime – these bottles are not recyclable. I believe that there are also some nutrition drinks that are white that have the same problem.
Both of the centers that had this happen have institutions that they collect this material from and that is why they have such large slugs of material visible in the bales.
Please call us if you have any questions about this material.