Can Manufacturers Institute partners with non-profit in Great American Can RoundUp

The Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI) announced that non-profit organization Food For All has signed on as a partner for The Great American Can RoundUp.

The RoundUp initiative is designed to help organizations recycle cans for cash and raise environmental awareness among participants. The partnership allows RoundUp participants to choose to donate the money they collect from recycling to Food For All, who will distribute the proceeds to soup kitchens and food banks in participants’ local cities and towns, nationwide.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Can Manufacturers Institute on their Great American Can RoundUp initiative,” said Denis Zegar, president and CEO of Food For All. “The opportunity to bridge an environmentally conscious recycling initiative to feeding the hungry here in the United States is civic responsibility at its finest.”

CMI also encouraged everyone to properly celebrate America Recycles Day on November 15 by recycling what might be the most common product that comes to mind when people hear “recycle” – the aluminum beverage can.

Seventy-five years after the first beverage can was introduced to the market, it has never been easier for consumers to show their environmental concern by recycling through the 8,660 community recycling collection programs in place across the country and recycling drop-off centers available nationwide. But now, recycling can also be considered big business for avid recyclers.

Last year, the aluminum industry paid out more than $800 million to can recyclers and the aluminum recycling rate was 57.4 percent. An average of 101,218 aluminum cans are recycled every minute in the United States, which adds up to more than 2 billion pounds of aluminum being diverted from landfills each year.

Manufacturing new aluminum cans from recycled cans uses 95 percent less energy than producing cans from virgin materials and a recycled aluminum beverage can makes its way back to the store shelf in as little as 60 days.

“Recycling has become a green activity that everyone understands and can participate in,” added Robert Budway, president of CMI. “We are eager to see how ambitious and generous our Great American Can RoundUp participants will be, both with collecting cans and donating their proceeds to Food For All.”