Pizza Boxes
- DO completely empty the pizza box (no food scraps, wax paper, ranch packets, etc)
- DO remove any parts of the box soiled by grease or food
- DO include the unsoiled parts of the box with your curbside recycling
- DON’T set out closed pizza boxes– flatten all boxes! If the recycling collection team can’t tell if it’s empty, they may not take it
About This Item
Take-out, delivery, frozen – a lot of pizza is eaten here in the city and it often comes in these cardboard boxes. Although the city generally accepts cardboard in its curbside program, the grease and food remnants that often end up coating the bottom interior of pizza boxes can contaminate the recycling stream. Most municipalities that have commercial composting have residents put them into that system. However, the city of Pittsburgh instead encourages residents to tear the lid off (or other unsoiled) pieces and place it into a blue bin, bag, or bundle with cardboard. Place the soiled pieces in the trash.
Please never set your pizza boxes out with the lids intact and closed, as then the recycling collection team can’t tell what is inside of it. Many times residents leave pizza, wax paper, ranch packets, and other items that really can not go into curbside recycling at all. Always flatten all your cardboard boxes for curbside pick-up! See Corrugated Cardboard Boxes for more.
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