Aluminum Cans: The Sustainable Packaging Choice – Part 3

According to a new report released by the Aluminum Association, Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI) and Institute of Recycling Industries (ISRI), aluminum cans are today the most recycled and highest value beverage container on the market today. The new report was released ahead of the Memorial Day weekend – the unofficial start of summer, during which time can shipments typically increase by as much as 20 percent over other months.

In the third of a series of entries, we’ll take a look at how the aluminum can is impacting recycling today.

Recycled Content

Aluminum cans contain more than 3X the recycled content of glass or plastic, with 70 percent recycled content on average. This compares to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated 23 percent recycled content for glass and 3 percent recycled content for plastic bottles.

(Imagery courtesy of the Aluminum Association)