Takeout Containers (Plastic) Curbside Trash Curbside Recycling Depending on the city you live in, please reference the requirement below: For the City of El Cerrito, you may place this type of material in your curbside recycling; however, please rinse and dry. Food traces contaminate the recycling process. For the other Cities (Richmond, San Pablo, Hercules, Pinole and unincorprated West Contra Costa County), you may place this type of material in your curbside trash. Do Not Reuse Plastic takeout containers are made up of chemicals that may leach into your food if you use them more than once. Ways to Reduce Bring Your Own To-Go Container When dining out, bring a reusable to-go container so that you can bring leftovers home sustainably. Reusable Packaging For Businesses Check out Upstream’s catalog of reusable packaging and unpackaging innovators that provide ways for consumers to obtain products, mostly food and beverages, in returnable, reusable, or refillable packaging – or they deliver products to consumers unpackaged altogether. Did You Know? The Preferred Takeout Container Out of all the types of takeout containers — aluminum, cardboard, wax-lined paperboard, plastic and foam — aluminum is the easiest for recycling plants to recycle, while foam is the most difficult.
