Aluminum Foil IGB Lab Special Instructions Other Recycling IGB LAB USERS ONLY: Place non-contaminated aluminum foil in main blue recycling bins in the lab. Tip: It is recommended to crumple the aluminum foil into a ball before placing in recycling bin. For contaminated aluminum foil, work with your Generator Assistant to determine proper disposal protocol. Clean Off All Food Aluminum foil is recyclable if it’s free of food residue. Do not recycle dirty aluminum because food contaminates recycling. Try rinsing the foil to clean it; otherwise, you can throw it in the trash. No Potato Chip Bags Items such as potato chip bags are made of a metallized plastic film, not aluminum, so don’t recycle them. Find out what you can do with potato chip bags. Do the Scrunch Test Scrunch an item you’re not sure about in your hand and, if it springs back, it’s not aluminum. Ways to Reduce Use Parchment Paper Instead Aluminum foil is taxing on the environment because of the high demand for it. Instead, try using parchment paper — also called baking paper or baking parchment — which is moisture- and grease-resistant, and makes cleaning up easy. Ways to Reuse Sharpen Scissors Fold a sheet of foil several times and cut through it with a pair of dull scissors to sharpen the blades. Protect Plants Protect your young plants from insects by wrapping its stem loosely in aluminum foil. Did You Know? How Aluminum Is Recycled Tin Foil Tin foil was the first commercially available foil and was in use from the late 1800s through the early 1900s. What we call “tin foil” today isn’t the same although it still persists. Luckily aluminum foil does not add a metallic aftertaste like true tin foil.