Can I Recycle Frozen Vegetable Bags in Los Angeles?

Made from a variety of plastics, frozen vegetable bags are required by the USDA to include a number denoting the type of plastic used. In Los Angeles, some bags can go directly in curbside recycling bins, while others can be deposited at a grocery store collection bin.

Curbside Recycling

• Frozen vegetable boil-in-bag or microwave-in-bag packaging is made of PET plastic, usually labeled with the number 1 near the recycling symbol. This type of packaging can be placed directly in your curbside recycling bin once it is rinsed clean of any food residue.

Grocery Store Collection Bins

• Other frozen food plastic bags are usually labeled with the number 4. Because they get caught in the recycling equipment used curbside, these bags should be cleaned and dried and deposited in the grocery store recycling container for plastic bags.

Unrecyclable Items

• Unfortunately, not all frozen vegetable bags are able to be recycled by Los Angeles County. If your plastic bag has a number 7 in the recycling symbol, it is either unrecyclable PC plastic or compostable PLA plastic.