Could be, but I’ve seen them be PP or other plastics.
> Did they contain a drink?
No to both. So read the back of the sign. Either they go into a “plastic container” collection or into the household garbage.
Your local Migros/Coop/Aldi‘s etc has an extra container for all other plastic bottles that are not PET.
Yes.
There are separate collections for PET and non-PET. PET = only with that symbol.
Exactly.
Yes basically only stuff that you can drink can go there.
There is a quite good episode of John Oliver about plastic recycling that actually shows how the swiss are doing the right thing, the plastic they let you recycle is the one that can be recycled. All the other plastics usually can’t be recycled.
Aldi and Migros collect other plastic bottles separately.
Apparently it’s only pet bottles for drinks.
I am also confused of why the strawberry packaging (which is food-grade PET and is perfectly clean) cannot go in there, but I guess they went for the simplest instruction rather than accurate ones that people would misunderstand
you can bring them back to where you bought them to recycle
OK now I’m confused. I was aware to not dispose of cooking oil plastic bottles, for example. But a yoghurt plastic container for example, I’ve always dumped that in the blue PET containers as it says on the cardboard piece around the container (paper to paper bin, container to PET recycling).
A few years ago, China has closed most of its PET recycling plants due to a large amount of accidents when workers came in contact with dangerous liquids left in PET bottles given to recycling.
This then started to collapse the PET recycling market. Because previously these bottles were collected in the US and Europe, and sold and shipped to China for recycling. Burning tons of fuel in the process. Now, with nobody buying these bottles, most just countries just burn them in waste plants as before.
Recycling was never really “green”. It’s just a narrative to make consumers feel less bad buying stuff wrapped in plastic.
You can recycle plastic bottles (not pet) at you local Migros, they should have a recyclingstation
Correct
Iirc it’s because the producers of beverages in pet bottles are required to finance the recycling if it has a deficit. Somebody correct me if I’m wrong please.
Oil bottles are usually not PET, they have a separate collection point for them in supermarkets, usually there where they also collect used batteries.
Normally they’re HD-PE, they need to be recycled separatly.
Exactly, put them in the separate plastic bottle container, at gor ex Migros.
On that topic: Where do you guys recycle empty deo containers that have the “Gefahrengut” label? According to the website of my recycling company, these do not belong in the “Alu” container and must not be thrown out with the normal trash but they don’t really tell where they should be discarded otherwise.
Recycling is a myth propagated by Big Plastic, which is Fossil Fuel plus Big Chem. Only 9% of all global plastics ever produced have been recycled. That’s because you can only recycle certain plastics such as PET. And you can only cycle them once—and into an inferior product such as plastic bags. Then you’re done. To continue, you must add virgin plastic. Thus, you increase the world’s already massive plastic burden. Be ready for continued onslaughts of ‘we have a new process for recycling plastic’ propaganda as Fossil Fuel fights to save itself.
Can somebody tell me why I have to bring those non-PET to the supermarket? Why dont they make a container for those aswell at the collection facilities?
Would be great to dispose of everything in the same area.
I am also confused. So the supermarkets will have something for non-PET. But I have never seen this. Is it only outside big supermarkets or inside? A
Only bottles with this sign are Pet. Even if they feel like Pet.
Only PET Drink bottles are allowed! Its a closed loop system, to keep the product quality high they have to exclude other PET packaging materials.
Mouthwash/Bodywash etc. all those bottles arent food grade. Impurities etc. will lessen the quality.
Everything containing a lot of oil or fat is also banned. Why? In the washing process fats/oils are hard to get ride of consistently.
For different food packaging, some might be PE-HD wich you can bring to a supermarket and dispose off/recycle there.
Often there are additives or protection layers added in other food packaging materials that will make it nearly impossible to create a consistent high quality recyclate.
As an Auslander living in Switzerland, I’m super impressed with the trash/recycling system. So many different items have dedicated recycling bins, and having to pay/trashbag for anything else is a huge incentive to make the effort. If you want to be lazy, it’ll cost you money. It can be a bit of a pain at times bundling up all your cardboard and paper, etc, but it’s a worthwhile effort for the good of the environment and I wish more countries would introduce something similar. Well done Switzerland.
26 comments
Trying to do my recycling correctly. It’s quite a confusing process.
Yes. Actually, not even PET materials without that symbols, as they might contain additives that shouldn’t go in there.
Most supermarkets collect the other bottles separately.
[Unfortunately not in English, but Google translate will help](https://www.petrecycling.ch/de/sammeln/was-sammeln)
> Are they a bottle?
Yes for sunflower oil and mouthwash.
> Are they PET?
Could be, but I’ve seen them be PP or other plastics.
> Did they contain a drink?
No to both. So read the back of the sign. Either they go into a “plastic container” collection or into the household garbage.
Your local Migros/Coop/Aldi‘s etc has an extra container for all other plastic bottles that are not PET.
Yes.
There are separate collections for PET and non-PET. PET = only with that symbol.
Exactly.
Yes basically only stuff that you can drink can go there.
There is a quite good episode of John Oliver about plastic recycling that actually shows how the swiss are doing the right thing, the plastic they let you recycle is the one that can be recycled. All the other plastics usually can’t be recycled.
Aldi and Migros collect other plastic bottles separately.
BTW, I only buy oil in glass bottles.
Always look at the [recycling code](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recycling_codes) and you’ll know right away
Apparently it’s only pet bottles for drinks.
I am also confused of why the strawberry packaging (which is food-grade PET and is perfectly clean) cannot go in there, but I guess they went for the simplest instruction rather than accurate ones that people would misunderstand
you can bring them back to where you bought them to recycle
OK now I’m confused. I was aware to not dispose of cooking oil plastic bottles, for example. But a yoghurt plastic container for example, I’ve always dumped that in the blue PET containers as it says on the cardboard piece around the container (paper to paper bin, container to PET recycling).
A few years ago, China has closed most of its PET recycling plants due to a large amount of accidents when workers came in contact with dangerous liquids left in PET bottles given to recycling.
This then started to collapse the PET recycling market. Because previously these bottles were collected in the US and Europe, and sold and shipped to China for recycling. Burning tons of fuel in the process. Now, with nobody buying these bottles, most just countries just burn them in waste plants as before.
Recycling was never really “green”. It’s just a narrative to make consumers feel less bad buying stuff wrapped in plastic.
You can recycle plastic bottles (not pet) at you local Migros, they should have a recyclingstation
Correct
Iirc it’s because the producers of beverages in pet bottles are required to finance the recycling if it has a deficit. Somebody correct me if I’m wrong please.
Oil bottles are usually not PET, they have a separate collection point for them in supermarkets, usually there where they also collect used batteries.
Normally they’re HD-PE, they need to be recycled separatly.
Exactly, put them in the separate plastic bottle container, at gor ex Migros.
On that topic: Where do you guys recycle empty deo containers that have the “Gefahrengut” label? According to the website of my recycling company, these do not belong in the “Alu” container and must not be thrown out with the normal trash but they don’t really tell where they should be discarded otherwise.
Recycling is a myth propagated by Big Plastic, which is Fossil Fuel plus Big Chem. Only 9% of all global plastics ever produced have been recycled. That’s because you can only recycle certain plastics such as PET. And you can only cycle them once—and into an inferior product such as plastic bags. Then you’re done. To continue, you must add virgin plastic. Thus, you increase the world’s already massive plastic burden. Be ready for continued onslaughts of ‘we have a new process for recycling plastic’ propaganda as Fossil Fuel fights to save itself.
Can somebody tell me why I have to bring those non-PET to the supermarket? Why dont they make a container for those aswell at the collection facilities?
Would be great to dispose of everything in the same area.
I am also confused. So the supermarkets will have something for non-PET. But I have never seen this. Is it only outside big supermarkets or inside? A
Only bottles with this sign are Pet. Even if they feel like Pet.
Only PET Drink bottles are allowed! Its a closed loop system, to keep the product quality high they have to exclude other PET packaging materials.
Mouthwash/Bodywash etc. all those bottles arent food grade. Impurities etc. will lessen the quality.
Everything containing a lot of oil or fat is also banned. Why? In the washing process fats/oils are hard to get ride of consistently.
For different food packaging, some might be PE-HD wich you can bring to a supermarket and dispose off/recycle there.
Often there are additives or protection layers added in other food packaging materials that will make it nearly impossible to create a consistent high quality recyclate.
As an Auslander living in Switzerland, I’m super impressed with the trash/recycling system. So many different items have dedicated recycling bins, and having to pay/trashbag for anything else is a huge incentive to make the effort. If you want to be lazy, it’ll cost you money. It can be a bit of a pain at times bundling up all your cardboard and paper, etc, but it’s a worthwhile effort for the good of the environment and I wish more countries would introduce something similar. Well done Switzerland.