Aluminum cans being sorted

Material recovery – value every step of the way

Bottle deposit systems – or deposit return schemes – are becoming increasingly popular as a proven way to help manage beverage container litter. They have made reverse vending machines essential – but what happens next on the bottle return journey?

The same complex requirements of deposit return systems that made reverse vending machines a necessity also created a demand for material recovery solutions in markets such as the USA and Canada.

TOMRA’s integrated logistics and materials processing system can provide substantial cost savings when compared with manual operations. Beyond cost savings, it is critical that the material quality is maintained throughout the process. TOMRA’s Material Recovery solutions ensure the highest material values. In fact, PET plastics alone average 10 cents more in value when collected and processed through our systems.

Our experience is unrivaled – we own transportation networks in six markets and process containers in 11 different facilities across North America. Every year, we process 130 million pounds of aluminum, 500 million pounds of glass, and 130 million pounds of PET plastic.

Markets

Cubed bales of compacted plastic bottles

United States

In the United States, we collect, transport, and process beverage containers for recycling. This includes PET plastic, cans and glass bottles.

Contact TOMRA U.S
Shredded plastic bottles in a container

Canada

In Canada, we process material coming from bottle deposit. Using TOMRA sorting systems we separate PET bottles from aluminum cans. Bottles are transformed into flakes and cans are baled. 

Contact TOMRA Canada
Mountains of empty plastic bottles

Other markets

We have the capability to offer material recovery services to any TOMRA market – get in touch to discuss with our team.

Contact the TOMRA team