Seven-Eleven and AGC lead Japan’s first glass recycling for store equipment

Seven-Eleven Japan and AGC have announced Japan’s first successful initiative to recycle discarded glass from store equipment for use in new store facilities. The collaboration involves collecting and repurposing approximately four tons of glass from 30 Seven-Eleven stores.

As part of the project, glass from aging store shelves was collected, processed, and refined into new flat glass panels. These panels were then reused in the glass components of refrigerated display cases in new stores. AGC produced the recycled glass at its Kashima factory in May 2024.

The process of recycling store glass for use in new equipment required a complex logistical system to collect, sort, and refine the discarded glass into high-quality cullet, or glass fragments. Seven-Eleven developed a logistics system to collect glass from stores. Both companies analyzed the composition of the discarded glass to ensure it could be recycled into new flat glass, then
AGC evaluated and refined to meet necessary quality standards.

Recycling store-derived glass reduces industrial waste by hundreds of thousands of tons annually and conserves natural resources like silica sand and soda ash. It also supports the push toward a circular economy while cutting Japan’s dependence on imported raw materials for glass production.

Moreover, the used panels requires less fuel to melt than virgin raw materials, resulting in lower greenhouse gas emissions. The companies estimate that this initiative saved 4.8 tons of virgin materials and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 2.4 tons.

The companies intend to continue expanding the circular use of glass materials, especially partnership between retail and manufacturing sectors.