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Continuing this week’s focus on the basics, today we’ll dig into the different types of plastics and what that means for their recyclability.
Seven types of plastics
The numbers you see on plastics are called resin codes, and although the triangle looks like a recycling symbol, it only tells you what type of plastic an item is, not whether you can recycle it.
- #1 plastics are commonly plastic bottles and jars
- #2 plastics include milk jugs and shampoo bottles
- #3 plastics include makeup containers
- #4 plastics can be squeeze bottles and cling wrap
- #5 plastics include yogurt and ice cream tubs
- #6 plastics can be CD cases, plastic cutlery, and foam clamshells
- #7 plastics include any types of plastic not represented in resin codes #1-6, including certified compostable plastics.
The graphic shows more detail about common plastic items and the resin code number you may find.
 Which plastics can be recycled in your home recycling?
Some plastic resins have good resale markets to recycle into new products while others don’t. Focus on recycling plastic items that have a number 1, 2, or 5 on the bottom that are:
- Plastic bottles and jugs, such as water and soda bottles, ketchup and salad dressing bottles, milk jugs, and shampoo bottles
- Plastic cups and containers, such as yogurt cups, cottage cheese containers, peanut butter jars, and produce containers
Find more detailed household recycling guidelines at:
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How to prepare your recycling
To prepare your plastics for the bin, take these four steps.
- Empty and give containers a quick rinse if needed. They don’t need to be squeaky clean but should be free of most food residue.
- Put plastic caps back on. Even though a bottle or container and its cap may be made of two different types of plastic, they will be separated, and both will be recycled. Plastic caps shouldn’t go in the recycling bin alone because they are too small to be sorted correctly.
- Leave your plastic items in their original shape; don’t crush them! Recycling sorting facilities use equipment for screening and sorting that is specialized for certain shapes and sizes.
- Put your items loose in your home recycling. Do not place them in a plastic bag.
Want to see the recycling sorting process in action? Local recycler Eureka Recycling has a virtual tour and offers recycling facility tours for the public.
Take action
Keep yourself accountable and give yourself credit for the work you have done:
- Set a regular time each day or each week when you will visit the Plastic-Free Challenge website to check in.
- To mark an action as complete, open your dashboard and scroll down to see the actions you selected. Click the check in button to mark as complete.
- The impact calculator is live! Most actions have an associated impact, and you can watch them grow as the challenge goes on. You can view impacts from yourself, your team, or everyone in the challenge.
Last week, the City of Bloomington and MNimize hosted two events to kick off the start of the Plastic-Free Challenge.
Goal setting and go-getting webinar hosted by the City of Bloomington
The City of Bloomington’s virtual kickoff event gave an overview of plastics and helped participants become comfortable with the categories and actions in the Plastic Free Challenge. They explained the basics of plastics, including what plastic numbers mean and which types belong in the recycling, as well as an overview of actions and tips for reducing your own barriers to have a successful challenge. Watch the recording of the webinar. The video password is PlasticFree2024.
Kickoff party hosted by MNimize
MNimize hosted an in-person event at La Doña Cervecería in Minneapolis that included MNimize business owners and other Plastic-Free Challenge partners. Andy Petran from Twin Cities Berry Company, Carly Gatzlaff from Churchill St. Restaurant, and John Krumheuer from Nikkolette’s Macarons shared why their businesses use less plastic, how they got started, and how reducing plastic has benefitted their businesses, employees, and customers.
Good to Go Cups, La Raza Radio, Hennepin County’s Community Recycling Ambassador program, Tangletown Neighborhood Association, and Clean Water Action shared tables with information about their organizations and opportunities to reduce plastic in the community.
Thank you to everyone involved in both kick-off events!
Friday, February 2: Tips for getting started with the challenge
Monday, February 5: The problem with plastics
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