what does this symbol mean?

Recycling symbols

The recycle symbol, the numbers in the triangle on plastics, and the marks for batteries and electronics, and what each one means.

Some recycling symbols say what an item is made of; others say it can be recycled, or that its maker has paid into a recycling scheme. The numbered triangle on plastics is the first kind: a resin identification code, which identifies the plastic. It does not by itself mean a local collection will take the item. The recycle symbol says an item is capable of being recycled, and the Green Dot shows a producer’s payment towards packaging recovery in Europe. The crossed-out wheeled bin on electrical equipment and batteries means the item is collected separately from household rubbish.

Recycling 2 symbols

Plastic resin codes 7 symbols

Batteries and electronics 3 symbols

Whether an item is accepted

Local programmes decide what they collect. The US Environmental Protection Agency notes that a local program may have different rules from general guidance, and that putting items in the recycling bin that can’t be recycled can contaminate the recycling stream.

Differences by country or standard

In the US, the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides accept an unqualified claim that an item is recyclable when recycling facilities are available to a substantial majority of consumers or communities where it is sold, which the Guides define as at least 60 percent. California goes further, restricting the chasing arrows to items that meet its statewide criteria. In the UK, the On-Pack Recycling Label is based on what most local authorities collect: “Recycle” goes on packaging collected by 75% or more of them, and “Don’t recycle” on packaging collected by less than 50%. In the EU and the UK, the crossed-out wheeled bin on electrical equipment and batteries is a legal requirement.

Where the recycle symbol came from

Gary Anderson, an architecture student, designed the recycle symbol in 1970 for a contest sponsored by the Container Corporation of America, which placed it in the public domain.

Sources

  1. Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, § 260.12 Recyclable claims, 16 CFR 260.12, Federal Trade Commission, via the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, § 260.12 and footnote 49
  2. Recycling Myth of the Month: Those Numbered Symbols on Single-Use Plastics do not Mean ‘You Can Recycle Me’, Emily Nuñez, 11 March 2020, Oceana
  3. Understanding recycling symbols, Recycle Now (WRAP), via the Internet Archive
  4. Directive 2012/19/EU on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), Annex IX, Directive 2012/19/EU, Annex IX, legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives), Annex IX
  5. How Do I Recycle?: Common Recyclables, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Paper and cardboard
  6. Frequent Questions on Recycling, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
  7. SB-343 Environmental advertising: recycling symbol: recyclability: products and packaging, California Senate Bill 343 (2021), California Legislative Information, Legislative Counsel’s Digest; § 17580.5(f)
  8. The recycling symbol’s Aspen roots, Andrew Travers, 12 March 2024, Aspen Journalism

Last reviewed September 25, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research