La Poste to offer drop-off points for used frying pans and saucepans

La Poste is joining a national scheme to collect and recycle used frying pans, saucepans and other metal cookware, in partnership with SEB the parent company of kitchenware manufacturer Tefal. 

The collection drive is intended to prevent old pans - many with potentially harmful non-stick coatings - from going to landfill and to ensure that aluminium and other metals can be used again, which SEB claims saves more than 90% of CO₂ compared with producing aluminium from virgin ore.

The scheme, which started earlier this year in supermarkets, has so far collected 80,000 tonnes of products.

The company aims to collect 20 million utensils by 2027.

Up to 1,700 collection points, including 945 at La Poste

SEB and La Poste say that the network now includes around 1,700 points nationwide, designed so that most people can find a drop-off site within 15 minutes of home. 

These consist of 945 postal sites, alongside waste centres managed by local authorities, Home & Cook shops, factory outlets, reuse organisations such as Emmaüs, and partner retailers during promotional operations (Carrefour, Auchan, Leclerc, Darty, Système U, Intermarché and others).

France Télévisions reports that 60 sites have opened across Normandy alone, covering Calvados, Manche, Orne, Seine-Maritime and the Eure. 

The collection points can be seen via interactive maps on the Tefal and Ademe websites.

However, the bins in La Poste buildings are not located in public customer areas. They are located in Carré Pro zones intended for business users, though still accessible to the public.

What you can deposit

Accepted items include frying pans, saucepans, woks, pressure cookers, moulds, tart and cake tins, and metal lids regardless of their brand or non-stick coatings. 

They must be made of aluminium, steel or stainless steel, and all brands are accepted.

Items not permitted include knives, ladles, whisks, cutlery, and any dish or lid made of glass, ceramic or stoneware.