The first step in the mechanical recycling process is the collection of post-consumer materials. Further to that, plastics might be sorted by other properties such as color, thickness, and use.

The plastic is then fed into shredders, which break it down into much smaller pieces. These smaller pieces, unlike formed plastic products, can be processed in the next stages for reuse and continue the washing process.

Washing is a crucial step in the plastic recycling process since it removes impurities that can impacted to the final product.

This final plastic recycling process step is where the particles of shredded plastic are transformed into a usable product for manufactures.