Apple Announces Plans to Accelerate Use of Recycled Materials in New Products

Apple today announced a "major acceleration" of its work to expand the use of recycled materials in its devices.

apple reycled taptic engines printed circuit boards
By 2025, Apple now aims to ensure that:

  • All Apple-designed batteries will use 100 percent recycled cobalt.
  • Magnets used in Apple devices will be made with 100 percent recycled rare earth elements.
  • All Apple-designed printed circuit boards will use 100 percent recycled gold plating and 100 percent recycled tin soldering.

The accelerated time frame comes thanks to a large number of changes the company made in recent years. For example, Apple's use of recycled materials for printed circuit boards was spearheaded by an exclusively recycled supply chain for gold in the plating of the main logic board for iPhone 13. Since then, it has increased the use of circuitry made with recycled materials in the iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods Pro, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and HomePod. In 2022, a quarter of all cobalt found in Apple products came from recycled material, up from 13 percent in 2021, paving the way for the transition to 100 percent recycled cobalt by 2025.

In 2022, around 20 percent of all material shipped in Apple devices came from renewable or recycled sources. The company said that the change brings it closer to the aim of eventually making all products using only recycled and renewable materials and advances its goal to make every product carbon neutral by 2030.

apple ar device disassembly
Apple also flagged that its Material Recovery Lab in Austin, Texas have started using AR video projected directly onto work surfaces to show recycling partners how to disassemble devices. In addition, the company said that by 2025 it will completely eliminate plastics from its packaging. Following the adoption of fibre alternatives to screen films, wraps, and foam, 96 percent of Apple packaging is plastic-free. The company says it is now working to replace the labels, lamination, varnish, and other "small uses" that make up the remaining 4 percent.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Available Next Month With These 8 New Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 9:48 am PST by
Apple released the first iOS 26.2 beta last week. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date....
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
m1 chip slide

Five Years of Apple Silicon: M1 to M5 Performance Comparison

Monday November 10, 2025 1:08 pm PST by
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Apple silicon chip that replaced Intel chips in Apple's Mac lineup. The first Apple silicon chip, the M1, was unveiled on November 10, 2020. The M1 debuted in the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and 13-inch MacBook Pro. The M1 chip was impressive when it launched, featuring the "world's fastest CPU core" and industry-leading performance per watt, and it's only ...
iphone pocket%402x

Apple Debuts iPhone Pocket, a Limited Edition iPod Sock-Style Accessory

Tuesday November 11, 2025 1:23 am PST by
Apple has teamed up with Japanese fashion house ISSEY MIYAKE to launch iPhone Pocket, a 3D-knitted limited edition accessory designed to carry an iPhone, AirPods, and other everyday items. The accessory is like a stretchy pocket, not unlike an iPod Sock, but elongated to form a strap made of a ribbed, elastic textile that fully encloses an iPhone yet allows you to glimpse the display...
homepod mini colors

New HomePod Mini Coming Soon With These Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 7:30 am PST by
Apple is expected to announce a new HomePod mini imminently, headlining with new chips. Here are all of the new features we're expecting. The second-generation HomePod mini is highly likely to contain a more up-to-date chip for more advanced computational audio and improved responsiveness. The current HomePod mini is equipped with the Apple Watch Series 5's S5 chip from 2019. Apple is likely ...
ios 26 digital id passport wallet

Apple Announces Launch of U.S. Passport Feature in iPhone's Wallet App

Wednesday November 12, 2025 9:15 am PST by
Apple today announced that iPhone users can now create a Digital ID in the Apple Wallet app based on information from their U.S. passport. To create and present a Digital ID based on a U.S. passport, you need: An iPhone 11 or later running iOS 26.1 or later, or an Apple Watch Series 6 or later running watchOS 26.1 or later Face ID or Touch ID and Bluetooth turned on An Apple Account ...
homepod mini thumb feature

New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and AirTag Were Expected This Year — Where Are They?

Wednesday November 12, 2025 11:42 am PST by
While it was rumored that Apple planned to release new versions of the HomePod mini, Apple TV, and AirTag this year, it is no longer clear if that will still happen. Back in January, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple planned to release new HomePod mini and Apple TV models "toward the end of the year," while he at one point expected a new AirTag to launch "around the middle of 2025." Yet,...
CarPlay Pinned Messages

iOS 26.2 Adds New CarPlay Setting

Thursday November 13, 2025 6:48 am PST by
iOS 26 extended pinned conversations in the Messages app to CarPlay, for quick access to your most frequent chats. However, some drivers may prefer the classic view with a list of individual conversations only, and Apple now lets users choose. Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.2 this week, and it introduces a new CarPlay setting for turning off pinned conversations in the Messages...
Tesla Charging

Tesla Working to Add Apple CarPlay Support to Vehicles

Thursday November 13, 2025 8:31 am PST by
Tesla is working to add support for Apple CarPlay in its vehicles, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Tesla vehicles rely on its own infotainment software system, which integrates vehicle functions, navigation, music, web browsing, and more. The automaker has been an outlier in foregoing support for Apple CarPlay, which has otherwise become an industry standard feature, allowing users to...
iphone air thinness

iPhone Air Sales Are So Bad That Apple's Delaying the Next-Generation Version

Monday November 10, 2025 11:41 am PST by
The thin, light iPhone Air sold so poorly that Apple has decided to delay the launch of the next-generation iPhone Air that was scheduled to come out alongside the iPhone 18 Pro, reports The Information. Apple initially planned to release a new iPhone Air in fall 2026, but now that's not going to happen. Since the iPhone Air launched in September, there have been reports of poor sales...

Top Rated Comments

Crowbot Avatar
34 months ago

But will it lower the prices?
This isn't a money saving move. It's a planet saving move.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TSE Avatar
34 months ago
Tim Cook really taking initiative for a cleaner planet because of his values and love of the mankind. Amazing person running an amazing company.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Justin Cymbal Avatar
34 months ago
Very happy that Apple is doing this

I’m glad that Apple continues to innovate in regards to expanding these recycling efforts as well as improving upon efforts to mitigate climate change by reducing Apples’ suppliers’ carbon footprint to zero by 2030:

https://www.macrumors.com/2023/04/05/apple-supply-chain-renewable-energy-progress/
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Supermacguy Avatar
34 months ago
Great news, I wish all companies could be even 1/2 as invested in resource recycling.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
34 months ago
This makes me feel better about my rapacious consumerism and buying things I don't need.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dwaltwhit Avatar
34 months ago

This makes me feel better about my rapacious consumerism and buying things I don't need.
I can't tell if this is sarcasm or self-loathing. Either way. Yes.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)