Photo by Charlie Wollborg on Unsplash (illustrative)
In August 2025, new data from Recicla Latas, the body that works to improve Brazil's can recycling system, showed that 97.3% of aluminum beverage cans were recycled in 2024. The results are independently audited, with technical support from Abralatas and the Brazilian Aluminum Association (Abal).
Key facts
Brazil's can recycling rate was 97.3% in 2024.
The rate has stayed above 95% for more than 15 years.
Abralatas puts average can recycling at around 73% in European countries and 56% in the United States.
Over a decade, can recycling in Brazil avoided more than 18 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions and the mining of 17 million tonnes of bauxite, the industry says.
Why it matters
An industry-wide commitment agreement guarantees that all can scrap is bought, and cooperatives of waste pickers are built into the collection chain. That gives empty cans a reliable value for collectors and keeps aluminum in use instead of in landfills.
Worth noting
The data come from the can industry itself, though they are independently audited. For 2025 the industry reported a rate of 100%, but published reports do not explain how that figure is calculated, so such numbers are best read as close estimates.