Earth Promise: Think Twice About That Pizza Box

When people see me at birthday parties or holiday gatherings, they think I’m watching their every move when it comes to recycling. (OK, maybe I do cringe a little when they have a stack of Styrofoam cups on the counter). It is a delicate balancing act between educating and being too preachy.

My friends feel quite proud of themselves when they leave their empty pizza boxes stacked in their recycling bins. I mean, why not? The boxes often do have the chasing arrows symbol on the box (showing that the box has been made from recycled materials), but unfortunately the grease from the pizza contaminates the cardboard rendering it unrecyclable. And not just the box becomes unrecyclable, but the other paper that sits with it waiting to be recycled becomes ruined.

Earth911 has a great post detailing the pizza box saga:


“Grease from pizza boxes causes oil to form at the top of the slurry, and paper fibers cannot separate from oils during the pulping process. Essentially, this contaminant causes the entire batch to be ruined. This is the reason that other food related items are non-recyclable (used paper plates, used napkins, used paper towels, etc).”

To read the post in its entirety, click here.

As long as there is no food or grease on the box, feel free to toss it in with your other recyclables. You just may have to rip off the top of the box (assuming it is food remnant free!)