Aluminum foil recyclable recommendations? Aluminum Recycling Helps Local Communities: Every year, the aluminum industry pays out close to a billion dollars for recycled aluminum cans — money that can go to support organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, as well as local schools and churches that sponsor can drive or ongoing aluminum recycling programs. How to Increase Aluminum Recycling: One simple and effective way to increase aluminum recycling is for governments to require consumers to pay a refundable deposit on all beverage containers sold in their jurisdictions. U.S. states that have container deposit laws (or “bottle bills”) recycle between 75% and 95% of all aluminum cans sold. States without deposit laws only recycle about 35% of their aluminum cans.
Keep in mind that several food products come with aluminum foil attached. Many yogurt containers have aluminum foil over the lids. K-cups also have aluminum foil lids. If you can recycle sheets of aluminum foil, chances are high you can recycle these items as well. Check with your recycling company to see if they can take other types of clean aluminum food storage products, like pie pans and turkey roasters, too. I reuse my clean aluminum foil whenever possible. Pieces with absolutely no food on them get folded up and put in the fridge until I need them next time. Pieces with food on them stay on my large pan until I am ready to put leftovers on a smaller plate. At that point, the foil can still be used to cover the plate.
What about aluminum pie plates and trays? If your local recycling program accepts aluminum foil, it will most often accept other aluminum food storage products. You’ll want to make sure these items are rinsed first, though. How is aluminum foil recycled? First, aluminum of all types must be separated from steel using an eddy current in a materials recovery facility. The aluminum is crushed and baled, then sent to a metal recycler. At this point, the aluminum is cleaned and melted into sheets of aluminum, where it can be manufactured into aluminum cans or foil products. Read additional information at can i recycle aluminum foil.
If you are able to recycle your aluminum foil locally, pat yourself on the back: Recycled aluminum saves more than 90 percent of the energy needed to produce virgin aluminum, and it’s one of the most valuable recyclable materials. Its recycling lifecycle is also relatively quick: An aluminum can that’s put in a recycling bin can be back on the shelves, as another can, in as little as two months. You can even buy aluminum foil that is made of recycled aluminum.
Aluminum Recycling Saves Energy! Discarded aluminum beverage cans are often recycled right back into new cans. Used beverage containers are the largest component of aluminum scrap. Most of these are recycled back into cans. The automotive industry is the second-largest user of recovered aluminum. According to Steve Larkin, president of the Aluminum Association, recycling old cans into new ones uses 95 percent less energy and produces 95 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than producing new cans entirely from scratch. In fact, the recovered aluminum processed in a typical year saves the energy equivalent of 1.3 billion gallons of gasoline. See even more info at https://www.ablison.com/how-to-recycle-aluminum-foil-and-is-it-biodegradable/.