The steel industry has recently tried to promote aerosol can recycling through their lobbying organization The Steel Recycling Institute. Scrap processors are not overly receptive to this program. Many of these cans arrive still under pressure or containing flammables, which present a safety hazard when baled or crushed. They can also create a housekeeping problem with the release of paint or insecticide when processed. The jury is still out on this issue.

Tin cans can be processed in bales or into high density bricks for direct shipment into a steel mill. Material can be shipped via railcar, van trailer, dump trailer, flatbed or in walking floor trailers. Like aluminum, each mill has preferences on how they want material packaged and delivered. It takes a fairly substantial baling press to make a decent tin can bale. The product must be tight, especially if you are shipping on a flatbed truck. We currently purchase tin cans in the east, Midwest and southern US and Canada. Let us know what you have available and we will contact you with a price.

Tin can bundles are relatively low in value and are seldom imported into North America. In 2000 a metric ton on tin can scrap was worth between $25 and $75 per ton delivered to the greater Chicago area. The value to recyclers depends mostly on the amount of freight it takes to reach a steel mill. Recycling processors were paid between $ 0  and $30 a ton for baled tin cans picked up at their facilities in 2001.Due to an abundance of low priced finished steel from importers, there is little demand for scrap by the domestic North American steel mills this year.  Fortunately, this material is abundant and easy to process so the handling costs are fairly low. Because they are magnetic, tin cans are sorted from other recyclables automatically with a magnetic conveyor belt. These belts usually feed the steel directly into an automatic baling press which produce mill quality 1000 to 2000 lb bales that are ready for shipment.