What will I be doing?

Recycling has become big business. As much as 50 percent of materials in some automobiles come from recycled materials. Other products also depend on recycled materials, which are often recycled for profit.

For example, one recycler was a man who stopped at furniture stores once a week to haul away the boxes that dinettes and chairs were shipped in. He did the store a service at no charge, disassembling the boxes so they lay flat in the back of his pickup truck. Once he had a full load, he took it to a cardboard recycler in a nearby city where he sold the load by weight.

What will I need to start?

To recycle for profit, you must know something about the needs of your customers and buyers. Many customers will give you the materials in exchange for hauling them away.

You’ll probably need some way of transporting what you recycle. Many recyclers use a pickup truck or an open trailer pulled by a car. For smaller items, the trunk of a sedan may offer enough storage until your business gets off the ground. An enterprising recycler started his business by walking along rural roads as self-appointed litter patrol, picking up cans and bottles that offered a return on deposit.

Who will my customers be?

Your customers will be wholesale recyclers. These are the folks that will buy your materials for recycling. To find wholesale recyclers, check area telephone books under recycling and related headings, depending on what you will be collecting: cans, bottles, scrap metal, glass, paper, cardboard, plastics or all of the above.