Everything You Need to Know about rPET Plastic Bottles

Protecting the environment is one of the many things most people care about to ensure a healthier and safer future for them and the next generations. Whether it’s saying no to vehicles and riding bicycles, planting trees, taking part, using reusable bags or choosing eco-friendly products, they strive to make an effort to reduce pollution and enhance safety. But one of the greatest things people, i.e. manufacturers, do is choose to use recycled plastic bottles for their products. Whether talking about food or the cosmetic industry, these bottles have a positive impact by reducing carbon footprint and protecting the environment.

These bottles can certainly change people’s way of viewing plastic. Even though plastic in general is mainly associated with doing harm to the planet, it seems that this one is considered the most sustainable choice so far. By repurposing used PET materials, industries create new bottles, but in doing so, they also seem to reduce waste and conserve energy.

PET vs. rPET bottles

PET plastic is certainly one of the most commonly used plastics for the production of bottles and some other containers, making it a versatile product. This plastic is made from petroleum, which is a fossil fuel, and it takes a quarter of a litre of oil to make just one single-litre bottle. And since the need and sale of these plastic bottles is huge every year, this means that a large amount of oil is needed to keep up with the demand. Unfortunately, this can do a lot of damage to the environment, and not to mention what it can do to human health.

rPET, on the other hand, is a recycled PET plastic that has already been used at least once, recycled, and then reused for the same or other products. This way of recycling PET is a far more sustainable choice than using PET plastic on its own. Compared with PET, getting recycled plastic bottles is safer and has a smaller carbon footprint and 79% fewer greenhouse emissions than raw PET plastic.

The Environmental Benefits of rPET Bottles

Reduced Carbon Footprint

Unlike creating PET, rPET doesn’t need oil in order to be used for creating other products. This means that for making recyclable plastic bottles, significantly less energy is used than for producing PET bottles, which reduces the overall environmental impact. This also means a lower carbon footprint,  which is estimated to be 79% lower than that of virgin PET.

No Need to Use Natural Resources

Given the fact that for the use of these recycled bottles, no additional source of material/resource is needed, this reduces the environmental damage caused by resource extraction. Instead, these bottles are recycled over and over again, in order to be used for the same purpose without losing their main properties.

Reduced Waste

Unlike bottles made from PET, those made from recycled plastic won’t degrade in soil for about 500 years. The use of recyclable plastic bottles helps divert millions of plastic bottles from landfills and oceans, which helps in having a safer and better environment. This process goes around in a circle, and this repurposing is a hope that one day this plastic waste will be reduced and eliminated for good.

One thing is for sure, recycled PET plastic is proof that plastic isn’t that bad, but only if using the right one. Embracing rPET in different industries means significantly reduced waste, conserved resources, and lowered carbon emissions. That is why, more and more companies are striving to use it instead of regular plastic, which is harmful to the environment.

What are Recycled Plastic Bottles Used for?

One of the main and most common uses of these bottles is being transformed into new beverages, liquid and cosmetic bottles. And while this is their common use and repurpose, this doesn’t mean that they cannot be used for something else. When recycled, these bottles can also be used for clothing (usually fleece), soft carpets that are usually machine washable (quite handy, though especially for children’s rooms or entryways), sleeping bag stuffing, and backpacks.

In order to be used for recycling, first the bottles are gathered and sorted by plastic. They must be cleaned thoroughly, and once done, they’re shredded into flakes, after which they are melted and processed into pellets. The pellets, on the other hand, are used for the production of new products. without losing their durability and quality. 

When in the search for the right bottles, though, you should pay attention to their size, shape and colour. Depending on the products you plan to store in them, choosing ones in a darker colour is always a better idea because they have a greater ability to protect sensitive content from light.  By preventing light exposure, these bottles also contribute to prolonging the product’s shelf life. And lastly, darker bottles look better and more luxurious than the basic clear bottles.