When you return your eligible drink containers to a Recycle Rewards refund point, you are helping build Australia’s circular economy by creating clean streams of recycled materials that can become new drink containers.
Collect your eligible drink containers and return them to one of our refund points.
Our Network Operator collects eligible drink containers from the refund points and delivers them to sorting and consolidating warehouses, where they are weighed and baled.
The Network Operator sells the materials to accredited recyclers.
Once returned and recycled, your eligible drink containers are re-manufactured into new drink containers as well as other products.
PET and HDPE plastics collected in Tasmania are sent to locations such as Victoria for recycling, including into new drink containers.
Glass collected in Tasmania is recycled locally for use as an aggregate in building and construction.
There are no aluminium recycling facilities in Australia, so we will send ours overseas to countries such as Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand to be recycled, including into new drink containers.
Cartons and poppers are challenging to recycle because they contain multiple layers of different materials. We’ll ship them to countries such as Malaysia for processing into new cardboard products.
| Container type | % of scheme material | Likely recycler locations |
|---|---|---|
| Aluminium | 60.93% | South Korea / Thailand |
| Plastics | 22.35% | Victoria |
| Glass | 15.04% | Tasmania |
| Liquid paperboard carton | 1.62% | Malaysia |
| Steel | 0.06% | TBC |
*Please note that recycler locations may change depending on market negotiations.
No, please do not crush your drink containers. Drink containers must be identifiable as an eligible drink container to receive a refund. It is recommended that drink containers returned for a refund meet the following requirements:
No, you don’t! Just make sure that your drink containers are empty, and that lids are on if possible.
If your drink container does not have a label it may not be recognised as an eligible drink container and will not be eligible for a refund.
No, please leave lids on your drink containers. We collect drink containers with lids attached to minimise the risk that any of those lids become litter.