Discover our recycling process
Recycle the unrecyclable with TerraCycle
TerraCycle is different from your local curbside recycler. We create recycling solutions for items your local recycling service typically won’t accept.
Most recyclers can only accept items that are profitable to recycle—meaning the value of the material must outweigh the cost of collecting and processing it.
The good news is that most trash can technically be recycled!
Thanks to our in-house scientists, we can determine the right process to turn hard-to-recycle trash into new items. From there, we work with brands and other stakeholders who help fund the recycling process. Learn more about how TerraCycle is working to eliminate the idea of waste.
Research & development
Our process starts with our R&D and Recycling Operations department—in-house scientists and material application specialists who work across our various offices. The team analyzes the materials to determine the right way to process them into something new.
Regulatory review
Before anything gets recycled, we make sure it can be. Our team looks at what the items are made of, how they need to be handled, and whether they can realistically be turned into something new. We also check local laws and real-world conditions—like whether the items might be too messy or tricky for our equipment. Once we’re confident recycling is possible, the materials go through our full process, from sorting to processing, eventually becoming raw materials used in new products.
Receipt & check-in
When waste arrives at one of our global Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), we scan, weigh, and inspect it to sort out anything non-compliant. Compliant materials are aggregated and sent to trusted processing partners.
We track everything through a strict recycling chain of custody so we know where each material goes and why. Over 95% of the waste we collect globally is processed in the region where it’s been collected. Our global process is also audited by Bureau Veritas—a world leader in testing, inspection, and certification services. Learn more about our recycling guarantee and tracking system.
Sortation & aggregation
Once waste is checked in, we sort it based on what it’s made of. To do that, we use a mix of sorting technologies. Depending on the material, this can include:
- Manual sortation – Skilled team members separate items by type.
- Size separation – Machines sort materials based on size using different screens.
- Sink/float separation – Items are placed in water; heavier ones sink, lighter ones float.
- Optical separation – Sensors identify materials, which are then sorted with air jets.
- Air density separation – Fans separate light and heavy materials.
- Magnetic separation – Magnets pull out metals like steel.
We only use waste-to-energy for the small percentage of material that we receive that is non-compliant (such as materials that the program is not intended to collect). Whenever possible, we find a solution to recycle these materials. If we receive materials that can’t legally be recycled—like medical waste—we follow required protocols.
Processing
Once sorted, materials are recycled into new items. Metals are sorted and smelted for use in secondary metal manufacturing. Glass is crushed and melted for new glass products, or cement and concrete. Rubber is powderized for flooring, and organics are composted or used in industrial and commercial fertilizer.
Plastics—our most commonly collected material—are shredded, sorted, cleaned, and turned into pellets, flakes, or powder for reuse. Click here to see our process in action and to learn more about recycling beauty waste.
What happens to the recycled material?
After we recycle the waste into raw material, it’s sold to manufacturing companies who produce the end product and complete the recycling journey. These end products may include outdoor furniture and decking, plastic shipping pallets, watering cans, storage containers and bins, tubes for construction applications, flooring tiles, playground surface covers, athletic fields, and more!
Examples vary by region.
Take a closer look
Curious how it all comes together? Take a behind-the-scenes tour of one of our facilities to see how we turn hard-to-recycle items into something new. From check-in to processing, it’s all part of our mission to eliminate the idea of waste.