Drink Pouch
Recyclable?
Blue Bins & Chutes
Other Recycling
Recommended
Trash
These cannot be recycled.
General Waste
Info & Insights
Drink pouches are flexible packages that typically have screwcaps.
Most drink pouches are made of a mixture of plastics with 2,3 or even more layers bonded together.
Such multilayer packaging is not possible to recycle.
These layers have different materials to create the necessary durability and barrier performance.
- the tough outer layer protects the contents and is suitable for printing,
- the barrier layer provides protection against moisture and aroma, and
- the sealant layer ensures that the pouch is sealed correctly and doesn't leak or interact with the contents.
- Outer layer: Usually nylon or PET
- Barrier layer: Usually nylon or a combination of aluminum & PET
- Sealant layer: Usually polyethylene or Polypropylene
Some designs may have even more layers.
So is it green?
Refill packs have 2 major advantages over rigid containers:
- they are lighter
- they can be packed more efficiently with less wasted space
These properties mean that they require less energy to store and transport.
Likewise, once used, empty pouches take up significantly less space than empty rigid containers, making them more efficient to transport to disposal facilities. As a result, they require fewer resources and reduce the environmental impact of waste transportation.
So although they are not recyclable, they have a lower carbon cost than many packaging alternatives.