How do you recycle polyester?

The most common polyester for fiber purposes is poly (ethylene terephthalate), or simply PET. This is also the polymer used for many soft drink bottles and it is becoming increasingly common to recycle them after use by remelting the PET and extruding it as fiber. Carpet companies can often use 100% recycled resin to manufacture polyester carpets in a variety of colours and textures. PET is also spun like cotton candy to make fiber filling for pillows, quilts and jackets. PET can also be rolled into clear sheets or ribbon for VCR and audio cassettes. In addition a substantial quantity goes back into the bottle market. This saves valuable petroleum raw materials, reduces energy consumption, and eliminates solid waste sent to landfills.

Patagonia, the US outdoor-clothing manufacturer, will accept your worn-out Capilene® base layers for recylcling. They have recently expanded the program to include Patagonia fleece, Polartec® fleece from other manufacturers and Patagonia organic cotton T-shirts to our list of recyclables.

For more information, visit: http://www.patagonia.com/web/us/patagonia.go?assetid=1956&src=vty_ex0058&slc=en_US&sct=US