Egg Cartons (Plastic) Recycling Plastic egg cartons made of #1, #2, and #5 plastics are highly recyclable. Athens Services recycles plastics #1 PET bottles and clamshells, #2 HDPE, and #5 PP. To identify your products’ plastic type, look for the resin number inside the chasing arrows, usually located on the bottom of the item. The recycling symbol does not indicate if the product is recyclable or not. Ways to Reduce Choose Paper Instead Paper cartons, which biodegrade easily, are a more eco-friendly packaging choice than plastic. Plastic #1 can be recycled, but only for a limited number of times, and it does not biodegrade. Ways to Reuse Get Organized Use your empty egg cartons as organizers for garage items such as nuts, bolts and screws, or craft items such as buttons, threads, beads and pastels. Start Seedlings Poke holes in the bottom of each egg compartment so that they can drain, and use the container as a seed starter.