Are Candy Wrappers Recyclable?

Candy is used as a gift, a reward, an incentive, and a treat.  Seasonal candy sales accounted for only $57 million in the United States in 2013, which has seen a dramatic jump since then. The Easter bunny can be thanked for the highest share of these sales, with the largest percent of seasonal candy being sold at Easter.

An estimated $2.5 billion will be spent on candy this time of year in the United States.  In all actuality, a very small percentage of people don’t like candy.

Although there are numerous other makers and sellers of candy, the market itself is dominated by 5 primary brands: Hershey, Mars, RM Palmer. Russell Stover, and Nestle. According to Statista.com, these five companies account for 98% of the candy sales at Halloween. Hershey and Mars account for 87% on their own.

With Easter right around the corner and all of that candy being sold, what should be done with all of those candy wrappers?

According to earth911, “while commonly recycled materials like aluminum, plastic and paper make up the bulk of (candy) packaging, candy wrappers are actually extremely difficult to recycle because of their size, weight and” the fact that they are sometimes made of mixed commodities.

There are websites dedicated to reusing or upcycling candy wrappers, but sadly most of them end up in the landfill.

To try your hand at reusing or upcycling candy wrappers, visit teracycle.com. For more information on trash and recycling visit www.wasteawaygroup.com.