How drink containers are recycled

Once you return your containers, their recycling journey begins. They are sorted by material type and sent for processing. The materials can then be used to make new bottles, cans and other products.

Containers that you return through CDS Vic are sorted and processed to create cleaner base materials that get batched up and sold as commodities on the recycling market.

How glass bottles are recycled

Lids and labels are removed.
The glass is sorted by colour: green, brown and clear.
The glass is crushed into small pieces called cullet.
The cullet is mixed with other materials and melted in a furnace.
The melted glass is shaped into new bottles and slowly cooled.
The new bottles are checked for quality before they are sent to beverage manufacturers to be filled and used again.

How plastic bottles are recycled

Plastic drink containers are sorted by plastic type before they are recycled.
The plastic is sorted into different types, such as PET, which is commonly used for drink bottles.
The plastic is shredded into small pieces and washed.
It is processed into recycled plastic that can be used to make new products.
Recycled PET can be used to make new drink bottles, helping keep the material in use.

How aluminium cans are recycled

Aluminium cans are crushed and packed into large bales for transport.
The aluminium is shredded and melted.
It is rolled into sheets of recycled aluminium.
The aluminium can then be used to make new cans and other products.
New cans are filled by beverage manufacturers and returned to shops, ready to be used again.
Aluminium can be recycled over and over without losing its quality.

Where does CDS Vic fit into existing recycling services?

CDS Vic complements your existing council kerbside recycling service. We work closely with councils to make sure that as many drink containers as possible across Victoria can be recycled.

The lifecycle of a drink container starts from when it is first manufactured. But what happens to those containers once people have consumed the drinks and throw the containers away? Unfortunately, many of them end up as litter or in landfill.

CDS Vic aims to capture as many eligible drink containers as possible, so that we can ensure they can be properly recycled.