7 Other
The item is plastic, but not one of the six common ones, or it is a mix. In ASTM's resin code 7 'indicates that the manufactured article is made with a resin other than the six previously specified or is made from more than one resin in a multilayer combination'. The EU decision gives 7 no meaning: its Annex I lists PET to PS as 1 to 6 and leaves 7 to 19 blank.
- Material
- Other plastics, or a mix
- Code
- 7 Other
- Family
- Plastics
- Defined by
- ASTM D7611 (not in Decision 97/129/EC)
Which bin, usually
Usually general waste: a 7 only tells a sorter the item is not one of the six common plastics, so collections rarely take it unless the specific plastic is on their list. Compostable plastics such as PLA are 'not intended for recycling', the US EPA says, and can contaminate the recycling stream.
Whether this goes in your recycling depends on your local collection; check your council or municipality's sorting guide.
The material
Any plastic other than codes 1 to 6, or several plastics bonded together in layers.
Where you see it
Multilayer pouches and snack bags, polycarbonate (PC) water-cooler bottles, nylon and acrylic parts, and plant-based PLA cups and trays.
What it does not mean
A 7 does not mean 'bioplastic' or 'compostable', and it is not a seventh recyclable plastic. It is the catch-all for everything else.
A resin code names the plastic; it is not a recycling promise. ASTM D7611 says resin identification codes 'are not “recycle codes”' and that using one 'does not imply that the article is recycled or that there are systems in place' to process it. That is why the 2013 revision of D7611 replaced the chasing arrows with a plain solid triangle, 'commonly associated with recycling' as the arrows were. In the US the FTC treats a code as a recyclable claim only when it is shown conspicuously, next to the product name; moulded into the base 'without more', it is not one (16 CFR 260.12, Example 2).
Other ways it is printed
- 7 in a triangle with OTHER or O under it
- 7 in a plain solid triangle (ASTM D7611 form)
- 7 with the actual plastic named under it, for example 7 PLA or 7 PC
- 07
Other plastics codes
Sources
- Commission Decision 97/129/EC of 28 January 1997 establishing the identification system for packaging materials (OJ L 50, 20.2.1997), as adopted — UK National Archives copy (Annex I: numbers 7 to 19 listed without a material) — checked 2026-09-23
- ASTM Standardization News, 2013: Modernizing the Resin Identification Code (the solid-triangle revision, and what each resin is used for) (Category seven: other resins or more than one resin; The 2013 change from chasing arrows to a solid triangle) — checked 2026-09-23
- ASTM D7611/D7611M-26, Standard Practice for Coding Plastic Manufactured Articles for Resin Identification — catalogue page (scope, significance and use) (Section 4.2) — checked 2026-09-23
- US EPA: How Do I Recycle Common Recyclables (Can I recycle compostable or bio-based plastics?) — checked 2026-09-23
- 16 CFR 260.12 Recyclable claims (US FTC Green Guides), eCFR (Example 2: when a resin code counts as a recyclable claim) — checked 2026-09-23
Written in our own words from these public texts and checked on the date shown. ASTM D7611 and ISO 14021 are sold by their publishers; only their public catalogue text is used here.