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Where does my recycling go?

Find out where your recycling goes and what happens to it at the processing plant.

Where recycling goes

Glass

Glass is sent to VISY in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland, where it is further sorted for colour, and re-processed into new glass bottles and jars.
Cans and Tins

Rinsed cans and tins from your yellow-lid recycling bin have a much shorter journey: they go to metal recyclers Macaulay Metals in Seaview, Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai / Lower Hutt.
Paper & Cardboard

Paper and cardboard are sent to Oji Fibre Solutions' paper mills in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland and Tokoroa to become recycled into new paper and cardboard items. Check out the process in this video!
Plastics (Clear/White/Coloured)

Clear / white coloured milk bottles and PET coloured plastics are currently exported to specialist plastics-processing facilities in Port Kelang and Johor, Malaysia. Here, the plastic is washed, ground into flakes, and then heated and extruded into plastic pellets. These pellets are then shipped to China, where they're made into cable sheathing or new LDPE bags!
Plastics (PET 1)

Clear Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET 1) plastics go to Pact Group’s rPET (Recycled PET) facility in Waiwhetū.
Plastics (PP5)

Polypropylene (PP5) – which is used to make a wide variety of products, from sports gear to medical equipment – is sent to Astron Sustainability in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, where it is taken through extensive processing to turn it into recycled resin.
Contaminated & Unsuitable items

Sadly, these all go to landfill! Please make sure that your recycling is clean, with no food scraps, before putting it into your yellow-lid recycling bin. If you’re unsure whether an item should go into your recycling bin or your rubbish bin, look it up via the ‘What goes in the bin’ search bar.