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Are Tetra Paks actually recycled?
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 30 Jun 2024
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Technically they're "downcyclable". The materials can be separated and used for other purposes, but they're not "cycled" back into being another tetrapak.
It's also a very energy intensive procedure so even if it's possible to use some of the materials again, it's by no means as environmentally friendly as products that can be recycled for their purpose. Take for instance glass bottles and aluminium cans, they can both be recycled into glass bottles and aluminium cans.
Some places also reuse glass bottles by cleaning them. This also costs energy, but not as much as grinding it down and heating it to produce new glass.
Aluminium cans are probably the best single use beverage container as of now.
The best one is not to get one in the first place. Reduce, reuse, recycle, reclaim.
Tetrapak is in the "reclaim".
Carrying a personal reusable water bottle is a good idea, because it reduces the production of singular use containers.
Yeah, iirc TetraPak advertised as being an eco-friendly packaging and was prohibited to do so (at least in some countries, dunno) exactly because of that.
In places where glass is reused, it's definitely the best option. It's heavier so it has a higher co2 output during transport but glass bottles can be reused up to 50 times, saving co2 in the long run.
But I have to concede, in america aluminum is probably the best option.
I mostly see them used for 1/2-gallon milk and small juice containers in the U.S. I’m in Canada right now and see them being used a lot for large juice containers also. I could see glass used for those (as they were in the past) but with the higher risk of breakage it’s not as ideal, but have a harder time picturing aluminum being used for milk and at least some of the more acidic juices. Does aluminum work with those beverages?
You seem informed on the subject: I’ve recently seen aluminum single-use cups advertised, targeting the same market as red plastic cups commonly seen at picnics. Those plastic cups are rarely recyclable, so I’m assuming the aluminum kind are more eco-friendly assuming they get recycled, even with high energy usage?
Aluminium is fine for acidic beverages and it is possible to buy juice in a can, but that would be a single serving. Juice and milk make sense to buy in larger sizes for multiple servings. Plastic bottles are also an option for those, but it really depends on how they're recycled locally if that makes more sense than the cartons.
The aluminium red solo cups ought to be recyclable just as any other aluminium product, provided that they're returned in the first place and not mixed with other disposable garbage. Selling them as disposable seems counterproductive. A better option would be to use actual cups or glasses for picnics and bring them back home. Washing a cup in a dishwasher is much better than recycling aluminium.
It's not easy for consumers to make a good choice.
They’re marketed as being recyclable along with the cans that might appear at a picnic. Whether they actually get recycled is another question; I’ve seen more picnic shelters with recycling bins, but certainly not all.
Some buyers in their online reviews said they were washing and reusing the cups instead of recycling them. I don’t know how effective that is but assume it’s fine. They would be a better choice than glass at places like pools where glass is prohibited.