How to Recycle Plastic Milk Cartons

Most plastic milk cartons can be rinsed and recycled

Many items can be recycled, such as glass, newspaper and plastic. However, certain types of plastic cannot be mixed when recycling and must be sorted properly in order to be used correctly. A small code is located on the bottom of most plastic items to identify the different types of plastic. Different codes mean different plastic items have to be handled in various ways, including plastic milk cartons.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic milk carton
• Water

Instructions

1. Rinse the carton when empty of milk and shake to fully empty out all of the water so that the milk container is clean.

2. Turn the milk container over to view the recycle code. It will have a small recycle symbol with a number. Nos. 1 and 2 are accepted as plastic recycle items, No. 4 is accepted when it is in a bag, and No. 7 means the item may not be recycled.

3. Look at your local recycling guidelines to view how various recycling numbers should be handled. You can often view this information on the website of the company that handles your recycling. For instance, Waste Management is a national waste and recycling company that has information about recycling on its website at WM.com. (See Resources.)

4. Examine the bottom of the milk carton for a large “C,” which is another code that indicates the carton may be recycled.

5. Set the empty, clean milk carton in your plastic recycle bin if marked “C” and/or if it has the recycling number 1 or 2. Contact your recycling company to find out how they would like you to handle cartons that are marked "4" or "7."

References

• Obvious Implementations Corporation: The Consumer Recycling Guide: Commonly Recycled Materials

Resources

• Waste Management: Recycle