When your box is full, please seal it with tape and return it to TerraCycle® using the prepaid shipping label affixed to its back. You can schedule the pickup by calling UPS at 03457 877 877 or by following the online procedure:
Go to ups.com/gb, click on "Shipping," then select "Schedule a Collection".

Fill in the required fields on the page, making sure to:
• Section 1: Enter a tracking number for each Zero Waste Box to be collected
• Section 2 : Fill in all mandatory fields
• Section 3: – Enter the quantity of boxes and total estimated weight of all boxes together. One box weighs about 7 kg
– Always choose "UPS Standard" in "UPS Domestic Service"
– Under "Does your collection contain items that weigh more than 32 kg?" », tick "No".
• Section 4 – Select the collection date and enter "Zero Waste Box"
as the "Collection Reference".
• Section 5 – Unhide this section and enter an email address.
You should receive an email confirming that your request has beenprocessed.

Accepted waste in the programme

Orthodontists participating in this programme and their patients can recycle all clear plastic dental aligners, as well as the pouches in which the aligners are distributed, and the aligner cases*.

Waste not accepted in the programme

Any waste other than dental aligners, aligner bags, and aligner cases.
Orthodontic bands (plastic or metal).
Toothbrushes & toothpaste tubes, cardboard or biodegradable packaging, hazardous waste, medical waste, broken glass, batteries, accumulators, oil paints, and aerosols.

*Please note that the Angel Aligner recycling programme is primarily aimed at recycling dental aligners, as this is the main type of waste from our activities. It is therefore up to each orthodontic practice to decide whether or not to accept pouches and cases in addition to aligners. For a more complete explanation, please refer to the questions below regarding pouches and aligner cases.

No, the Angel Aligner recycling programme accepts dental aligners from all brands.

Yes. We encourage collectors to only send the box to TerraCycle when it is full in order to minimize the carbon footprint and to maximize the cost efficiency of the associated fees.

If you have a problem with your UPS return label, we can provide you with a new label. We ask you to send us an email with a description of your problem and a photo of your label, so that we can liaise with TerraCycle to generate a replacement label. Once created, we will send you the new label by email so that you can print it and attach it to your box.

Once received by TerraCycle, the aligners are weighed, sorted, and separated. They are then mixed with other similar waste streams, and as soon as a sufficient quantity of waste is reached, they are sent to TerraCycle's recycling partner. The waste is shredded and then extruded into pellets that can be remolded to create new everyday items such as outdoor coverings or garden furniture, for example.
Angel Aligner works continuously with TerraCycle to identify and develop more specific solutions for the recovery of waste from the programme.

It is important that all external communications regarding the Angel Aligner recycling programme comply with TerraCycle standards. As a participant in the Angel Aligner recycling programme, you will receive dedicated communication tools approved by Angel Aligner and TerraCycle to enable you to communicate with your clients in a credible and transparent way (for example, an email template to send to patients to explain how the programme works). If you have already purchased your first Zero Waste Box but have not yet received communication tools, please contact the Angel Aligner customer service team: care.uk@angelaligner.com | +44 20 4586 5686.

The price of a Zero Waste Box purchased as part of the Angel Aligner recycling programme is £140 (price per box, taxes included). This price covers all waste treatment and processing costs, as well as shipping the box to your clinic and return to TerraCycle (a prepaid return label is included). The purchase price is therefore calculated based on the actual costs associated with transport, processing, and transforming the waste into reusable material in the country where the waste is collected.

The boxes are delivered within ten (10) business days from the billing date by the TerraCycle transporter.

This recycling programme is mainly aimed at collecting dental aligners, as this is the main waste stream for Angel Aligner. However, the programme can also accept the pouches in which the aligners are distributed to patients and the rigid plastic aligner cases, in addition to the aligners themselves. Pouches and aligner cases can be placed in the same Zero Waste Box: it is not necessary to order another Zero Waste Box for the pouches and aligner cases.
Please note that communications about the programme do not mention that aligner pouches and cases are accepted. If you also wish to collect aligner pouches and cases, please communicate this to your patients.

No, you do not need to clean the aligners before placing them in the box, but please remove as much remaining liquid as possible.

We estimate that a Zero Waste Box from the Angel Aligner recycling programme can hold about 2,500 aligners on average.

Almost everything can technically be recycled. But whether or not alocal recycling company accepts to recycle a waste depends on whether they can make money doing so. For example, if the cost of collecting and processing the waste is lower than the end material value, it will likely be locally recyclable. If the costs are higher, then it likely won’t be collected and recycled by a local recycling company. That’s why local recyclers typically accept only profitable-to-recycle items such as aluminium cans, plastics #1 (PET) and #2 (HDPE), and cardboard, and they do not accept more complex waste such as dental aligners.

This is where Angel Aligner and TerraCycle come in. Our collaboration offers orthodontists the unique opportunity to make the recycling of dental aligners possible by funding the cost of transport, sorting, and processing of waste through a dedicated logistics chain.

The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) department at TerraCycle conducts comprehensive life cycle assessments of a wide range of waste that show TerraCycle solutions are better for the planet than landfill and incineration. These LCAs are verified by third parties and show that TerraCycle recycling models outperform landfill by 72% and incineration by 68% on average on key indicators such as global warming potential and human carcinogenic toxicity, in the oral care waste category.