The Brazilian Aluminum Association （ABAL） and the Brazilian Association of Highly Recyclable Cans （ABRALATAS） informed on Thursday, October 28, that Brazil has recycled 98.2% of the total number of aluminum cans for beverages sold in the domestic market in 2009. According to data of these two entities, 14.7 billion packagings were recycled in the year, corresponding to 40.3 million per day or 1.7 million per hour.
This result keeps Brazil as world leader since 2001. In 2009, the volume of cans collected was 19.9% higher than in 2008, whereas the sale of aluminum cans for beverages increased by 12% in the same period.
Renault Castro, Abralatas’ CEO, points out that the manufacturers of beverage cans have been following the increase in demand by investing over US$ 520 million in the last two years. “These investments will increase the sector’s installed capacity by 52%, up to 25.5 billion cans/year”， he says.
For ABAL’s Recycling Commission coordinator, Henio De Nicola, the 2009 recycling rate followed the increase in the number of cans available in the domestic market brought about by higher consumption. “The calculation also included the can scrap not absorbed by the recycling industry in 2008, which was held in the storage warehouses as a result of the price drop due to the economic crisis observed since the end of 2008”， he points out.
Social, economic and environmental advantages
The recycling of aluminum cans for beverages accounted for R$ 1.3 billion in 2009. Just the collection stage injected R$ 382 million in the Brazilian economy, equivalent to the generation of employment and income for 216 thousand people.
In addition to the social and economic benefits, the recycling of aluminum cans also favors the environment. The recycling process uses only 5% of electric power and the emission of greenhouse effect gas is of 5% as compared to the production of primary aluminum.
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