PET or PETE, #1
The MVP of the recycling system, polyethylene terephthalate is marked with a 1 inside the looping arrows. PET is used to make soda and water bottles, other bottles and containers for everything from mouthwash to peanut butter, as well as some types of plastic toys. It’s the perfect material for recycling—easily cleaned, lightweight, can be turned into transparent plastic—and is themost-recycled plastic in the world. For this reason, we’re ranking it the least-least recyclable material—you’re welcome, PET!
But careful! Just because PET is ultra-recyclable doesn’t mean it’s sustainable. Only 30% of plastic bottles are recycled in the U.S., and most of those bottles aren’t made into other bottles but are “downcycled” into lower-quality items—most of which can’t be recycled again. And since the recycling process degrades the quality of the plastic, even if these bottles are made into new ones, there’s only so many times you can recycle one Coke bottle before it’s downcycled into an item headed for a landfill.
