Blue box changes

What changes are happening in 2026?

Starting January 1, 2026, all households in Ontario will be able to recycle the same items – and even more things than before. 

All packaging (made of paper, glass, metal, rigid or flexible plastic), single-use items (like food and drink containers, cutlery, or straws), and loose paper are recyclable in the updated recycling system. You can now recycle more items, including: 

• Food bags and wrappers, like bread bags, produce bags, frozen food wrappers, snack wrappers, cereal box liners, milk bags, and drink pouches 

• Large plastic bags and wraps such as bubble wrap, pet food bags, litter bags, soil and bedding wrap, salt bags 

• Coffee packaging like coffee bags, takeout coffee cups and lids, and empty and rinsed coffee pods 

• Personal care containers like toothpaste tubes, floss containers, and deodorant tubes 

• Polstyrene foam (Styrofoam) items, like party cups, foam trays, foam egg cartons, and packing peanuts) 

• Single-use food items, like cups, lids, straws, takeout containers, and cutlery 

• Blister packs, like the kind used for pills or small electronics 

• Paper laminates, like ice cream cartons 

You still need to return alcoholic beverage containers to participating retailers – visit here for a map of locations that accept empty deposit containers. You also can’t recycle things like hardcover books, glass from windows or cups, plastic toys or other products meant to be used more than once. Keep using the Waste Wizard on this website or the Guelph Waste app to check if something can be recycled. 

Keep putting your recycling in the same blue cart, bin, or recycling chute.  Set it out at the same place, on the same collection day, and by the same time  –  6:30 a.m. (or 5 a.m. if you’re in the Downtown Collection Area).  

The City of Guelph will still collect garbage, organics, and yard waste as usual. 

Why are these changes happening?

The Ontario government’s Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act’s Blue Box Regulation places full financial, operational, and performance accountability for the Blue Box program on producers of recyclable materials. This approach, called producer responsibility, already applies to products like tires, batteries, electrical and electronic equipment, and hazardous and special products like paints, pesticides, and antifreeze. Ontario’s Blue Box program is now administered by a new nonprofit organization, Circular Materials.

Producer responsibility creates a direct incentive to producers to reduce waste and improve recycling, which decreases natural resource extraction and pollution, including greenhouse gas emissions.

Who is responsible for blue box collection?

Circular Materials  is responsible for administering the provincial recycling collection system on behalf of the companies that produce blue box materials sold in Ontario. In Guelph, WM collects recycling for Circular Materials. Property owners and residents should contact WM using the contact information on this page for all matters related to their blue carts or bins, including collection schedule information, missed pickups, requests for repairs or new containers, and any other questions. 

Please continue to contact the City of Guelph about garbage, organics, yard waste, and other programs.

Waste Resource Innovation Centre

Customers can continue to bring the same blue box materials to the Waste Resource Innovation Centre public drop-off at 110 Dunlop Drive in 2025.

Resources

• Blue Box Regulation
• Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act
• Strategy for a Waste Free Ontario: Building the Circular Economy
• Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority
• Circular Materials
• Waste sorting guide
• Multi-residential waste collection
• Waste collection for businesses
• Downtown waste collection

For more information

Solid Waste Resources
519-767-0598; TTY: 519-826-9771
[email protected]