Most fast-food restaurants and bars nowadays sell their drinks in disposable cups. and notably, these cups are transported using drink carriers.
Environmentally, both the cup and its carrier are pollutants.
On a good day, McDonald’s sells around 70 million cups of soft drinks, which is almost equal to the number of cup carriers disposed of each day.
This, of course, is an environmental catastrophe that leads to most people begging for the answer to the question; are drink carriers recyclable?
Are Drink Carriers Recyclable?
Most drink carriers are recyclable depending on the nature of the material they are made out of. In many cases, carriers may be made of;
- Paper boards
- Molded pulp
- Thin plastics
Let us understand each material individually and find out if they are recyclable or not.
- Paperboard carriers
Paperboard carriers are made of natural raw materials such as soft and hardwood trees, used papers, recycled sugarcane bagasse, and cotton.
From there making these carriers are environmentally friendly and can be recycled to form compost manure or be used as temporary containers to hold plants.
You may also grind and use them as mulch during the dry season.
After some time, the board will slowly disintegrate and form compost.
However, based on the fact that most paperboard carriers are hardened using chemicals, do not use them to fertilize vegetable and edible herbs as manures.
- Molded pulp carriers
Molded pulp carriers are common packaging materials made by recycling paperboard and newspapers.
They, too, are eco-friendly and can be used to make composts, mulch, and plant containers.
- Plastic carriers
As a matter of environmental concern these are the worst carriers.
They are difficult to recycle and are very dangerous to the environment since most of them take more than 100 years to fully disintegrate.
But, you may recycle these carriers by converting them into cool DIY stuff.
You may use them as;
- Dumbo or pet rat feeders
- Plant containers
- Small toolboxes
Recycling Ideas of Drink Carriers
The surging demand for drinks is pushing manufacturers to produce more and more drink carriers.
In the USA, drinks carriers made from plastic release mycotoxins to the water, ensnare animals, and generally make the environment ugly.
However, despite cup carriers being unwelcomed in many homes after their use, you can always hatch cool DIY stuff from them.
Here are mind-blowing recycling ideas you can venture into to get those carriers of the streets.
- Use them as bathroom organizers
Drink or beverage carriers have small pockets where the drink cup seats.
You can use those pockets as organizers. To do this, place the drink carriers on a newspaper, paint them and leave them to dry.
After the initial paint layer, you can coat them with another layer of clear but waterproof paint to seal the container.
Take the now colorful carrier and put it in your bathroom cabinet or closet.
You can put rings, necklaces, and hair accessories in three different dimples on a holder.
Other than inside the bathroom, dads have found an efficient way of recycling beverage holders in the garage as small tool holders.
They achieve this by pinning the holder on the wall and placing small nuts and bolts in the dimples.
This organizes their garage.
- Seed germinators
Living in a tranquil environment surrounded by green scenes is a good way to appreciate nature.
There are no better ways of helping the environment other than using pollutants carriers to grow trees.
Start this by planting trees, vegetables, or even herb seeds in carriers. Just fill the cap with soil or growth medium to three-quarters full, put a single healthy seed in the middle of the container, and fill the remaining part with soil.
Water and keep them in a warm place to trigger germination.
Once the seedling has sprouted, separate the dimples and wait for plants to get stronger for planting in the fields or garden.
Depending on the size of the tree or herb, you may use larger or smaller beverage holders.
Small beverage holders are cool for vegetables and seasonal herbs.
On the flip side, large cup holders may help you to grow trees and all-year-round herbs.
- Home DIY Christmas snowflakes craft
This is another wonderful way of keeping cup holders off the streets.
Here, separate the dimples from the entire pack of two or four or eight drink carriers into single cups. Cut the walls of the cup, leaving a snowflake-like shape.
Place the cut cup on a cardboard upside down, paint it white and leave it to dry.
Smear glue on the surface and sprinkle snow flakes decorators such as silver jewels, and hang them on a ribbon.
Wrapping Up
Drink carriers are recyclable, provided that you employ DIYs in the process.
You may convert them into thousands of brilliant ideas, toys, and containers.
But, if you have a keen sense of living in a natural environment, go for paper or molded carriers. They disintegrate into the soil forming manure, and you can use them as mulch.
