Are your foil recycling practices up to date at work? Aluminum is everywhere, but nowhere is it more common than the average employee's lunchbox. Even the foil from your CEO's pastrami sandwich has, at some point, found its way into your workplace recycling stream.

According to the Aluminum Association, this precious metal is among the most valuable and recyclable materials known to humanity. It forms a perfect closed loop and can be recycled--endlessly and forever! Some 75% of all products made from aluminum are recycled in the U.S.

But what about foil? Recycling this tricky type of aluminum is not so straightforward. Here are 5 must-know tips that will help you optimize the way you recycle aluminum foil at work this year.

#1: Teach employees that foil is recyclable

What is aluminum foil anyway? Most of your employees will know that foil is potentially recyclable, but because they aren't sure of the composition (foil sheets, or pans, or packaging) they may decide to dispose of it in your workplace trash can. And tin foil is not biodegradable.

A single American throws away roughly three pounds of foil every year. If it reaches the landfill, it will take approximately 400 years to break-down through the oxidation process. Worse still, if it's burnt it contributes to toxic air pollution and releases harmful gasses into our atmosphere.

#2: Contaminated tin foil can't be recycled

Clean tin foil is magically recyclable forever, until it comes into contact with your lunch. Because foil recycling relies on clean materials, your employees can't just ball up their foil and throw it in the recycling bin at work. Once the foil is contaminated with food waste, it stops being viable.

If enough contaminated foil gets into your stream, it has the potential to ruin every other material in that load. This means none of it can be recycled, so the entire process is rendered null and void. Educate your employees about clean tin foil recycling to prevent contamination at work.

Here is why workplace recycling education is so vital.

#3: Start a tin foil reuse and recycle program

The good news is that you're not powerless against the food contamination making its way into your canteen. Your green team can start an amazing foil recycling initiative to encourage employees to wash their foil packaging, sheets, and pans before adding them to your recycling bins.

Tin foil programs are part of the "reuse" initiatives that inspire employees to either take their foil home to be washed (most types are dishwasher safe!) and reused as an infinitely better alternative to plastic. Aluminum packaging is strong and can be used repeatedly‚ then it can be recycled.

#4: Get Creative About Reusing Foil at Work

Aluminum foil recycling is the final step in the lifecycle of your foil (before it becomes another aluminum product). The goal of sustainability for your green team is to keep the recyclable material in play as long as it's useful, and to only recycle it once it has no more use at the office.

Tin foil has an enormous range of uses that you can take advantage of at work. It polishes silverware, cleans grills, scrubs dishes, sharpens scissors, improves radiator efficiency, and reflects light in a sun box for office plants. Find ways to lengthen its lifespan as part of your tin foil reuse program.

#5: Think big when it comes to impact

Once your green team has established the protocols for your aluminum foil recycling and reuse program‚ you can think about extending it to expand your impact. Other companies in your area or niche will have similar problems. Perhaps recycling contaminated foil has reduced their recycling impact or motivated them to start an initiative of their own.

Your team can be the spark that helps other companies institute their own aluminum initiatives. Host green team talks and share your experience running campaigns at work. Show other teams how much of a difference can be made when small changes become a part of your workplace culture. Together you can make foil recycling just as common as can recycling in your area.

These 5 must-know tips will help you improve the level of education about aluminum foil and the ways it can be recycled. If every workplace bands together to take extra care of the materials that have a truly closed loop, we stand to benefit from less resource consumption, less pollution, and an abundance of recycling materials that can be refashioned into products made for sale.

Right now, aluminum cans are the easiest to recycle, but we want to challenge your green team to start tackling the products that aren't so easy. This year, set a goal to make foil recycling a regular practice among your employees, and eventually, as a part of daily practice in every workplace.

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