When we throw an empty bottle into a glass recycling container, we rarely think about what happens afterward. We usually assume that it will simply be collected, melted, and turned into a new bottle or jar. And indeed, glass is one of the few materials that can be recycled almost endlessly without losing its quality. However, for this process to work properly, the glass stream must be clean.
This is exactly where a problem arises that many people do not expect – ceramics.
Special attention to this issue was drawn by the European initiative Close the Glass Loop, which at the beginning of 2026 organized an expert episode of the series “90 Minutes to Close the Loop”, dedicated to the quality of glass collection in the hospitality sector. The focus was on ceramics, one of the most common yet often overlooked contaminants in glass recycling.
At first glance, glass and ceramics look similar. When a plate, cup, or piece of porcelain breaks, many people assume that such waste can be disposed of together with glass. However, in the industrial recycling process, the difference between these two materials is enormous. While glass melts and is transformed into new packaging, ceramics have a completely different structure and melting temperature. Because of this, they do not melt together with glass in furnaces but remain as solid inclusions in the new product.
Such small impurities can cause major problems in production. Pieces of ceramics sometimes manage to pass even through advanced sorting and quality control systems. When they end up in new bottles or jars, they can weaken the structure of the glass, increasing the risk of breakage during filling, transportation, or use. In industrial plants this can lead to production interruptions, equipment damage, and significant financial losses, and in the worst case even safety risks for workers and consumers.
One of the places where the quality of collected glass is particularly important is the hospitality sector. Hotels, restaurants, and cafés – known as the HORECA sector – use large quantities of glass packaging for beverages and food on a daily basis. In Europe and the United Kingdom there are more than two million such establishments, and they generate a significant portion of glass waste. Estimates show that this sector accounts for around 17 percent of the total glass recycling potential, while as much as about 30 percent of beverages in the European Union are consumed precisely in hospitality establishments.
In tourist countries, restaurants and hotels often operate like large households, but with a much more intensive pace of work. During a single day they can generate large amounts of empty bottles and jars, which means that proper waste separation becomes a key step for the quality of recycling. However, work in such an environment is often fast and dynamic, with limited space, seasonal peaks in activity, and high employee turnover. For this reason, mistakes in waste separation sometimes occur.
Experts emphasize that the solution is not complicated, but it does require organization and awareness. Clearly labeled containers, simple rules for waste separation, and short staff trainings can make a big difference. When staff know that a broken cup or plate should never end up in a glass container, the risk of contamination is significantly reduced.
The use of recycled glass plays a huge role in the development of the circular economy. Every time glass is reused as a raw material, the need for the exploitation of natural resources such as sand is reduced, as well as the energy consumption in the production of new products. This reduces carbon dioxide emissions and the amount of waste sent to landfills. However, all of these benefits depend on the quality of the collected material.
That is why the message from experts is very simple, yet important: proper waste separation begins where the waste is generated. When glass is collected separately and without contamination, it can once again become a new bottle, jar, or glass – many times over.
The next time you separate waste, remember this simple rule. Glass goes into the glass container, but ceramics do not. This small difference helps glass recycling truly work and allows this material to remain in a closed loop of use.
Milena Maglovski
