Ingredient · Updated

Recycled Plastic

Neutral in 1

Found in 1 product

What is Recycled Plastic?

Recycled Plastic is material reprocessed from recovered plastic waste, often collected from consumer products like bottles and containers. The process involves cleaning, shredding, and remelting the plastics into new forms that can be used in manufacturing.

This ingredient is primarily used in non-food products like trash bags and sponges for its durability and sustainability compared to virgin plastic. Health evidence mainly focuses on chemical safety in contact with humans; there are regulations ensuring recycled plastics used in consumer applications are safe.

When you see Recycled Plastic on a label, it indicates a product's commitment to environmental sustainability by reducing waste and reusing resources.

Commonly found in: Trash Bags, Sponges, Non-food Packaging

What to watch

  • Chemical contamination is a concern if recycling processes are not well-regulated, though standards are in place to mitigate this.

Benefits

  • Using recycled plastic reduces landfill waste and energy consumption compared to producing new plastics.
FDA

Recycled plastics used in consumer goods must comply with safety and quality standards to avoid contamination.

Research

While it supports sustainability, research stresses the need for stringent processing protocols to ensure safety.

Vegan

Recycled Plastic is not derived from animals and is suitable for vegan products.

Sources: Recycled Plastics in Food Packaging

Scout's take

Standard formulation ingredient — neither beneficial nor harmful at typical use.

All 1 product with Recycled Plastic

Where Recycled Plastic shows up

Scan any product to see every ingredient explained — and healthier swaps.