Dispose of or Recycle Used Cooking Oil and Grease
Used cooking oil, fryer oil, bacon grease, meat drippings, butter, shortening, and other fats should never be poured down a sink, garbage disposal, toilet, storm drain, or onto the ground. Even when oil is liquid and warm, it can cool and harden inside pipes, causing clogs, sewer backups, costly plumbing repairs, and pollution problems.
Rules and recycling options vary throughout the United States. Check with your city, county, waste hauler, wastewater utility, or household hazardous-waste program to learn whether your community offers cooking-oil collection or recycling.
First: Cool the oil safely
Do not handle, transfer, or dispose of hot oil.
Turn off the heat and allow the oil or grease to cool completely in the pan or pot.
Keep children, pets, and flammable materials away while it cools.
Do not add water or other liquids to hot oil.
Do not pour hot oil into a glass jar, plastic container, trash bag, or drain.
If you need to speed cooling, follow safe food-handling and container instructions. Do not place a hot pan directly into a refrigerator or freezer.
Once cooled, you can decide whether the oil can be reused, recycled, or placed in the trash.
Reuse cooking oil when appropriate
Cooking oil can sometimes be filtered and reused, especially after shallow frying or cooking at moderate temperatures. Do not reuse oil that is dark, sticky, foamy, smoky, rancid, unusually thick, or strongly flavored by the food cooked in it.
To reuse oil:
Let it cool completely.
Strain out food particles through a fine mesh strainer, cheesecloth, coffee filter, or other suitable filter.
Store it in a clean, dry, sealed container.
Label the container with the type of oil and date.
Keep it in a cool, dark location or refrigerate it if appropriate for the oil.
Do not store used oil in a wet container, because water can create dangerous splattering when oil is reheated.
Recycle used cooking oil if available
Some communities, wastewater utilities, household hazardous-waste facilities, public-works departments, and private companies collect used vegetable oil for processing into biodiesel, renewable fuels, soap, or other products.
Programs differ. Some accept only liquid, plant-based oils, such as vegetable, canola, corn, peanut, olive, or sunflower oil. Others may accept limited amounts of animal fats. Do not assume that a cooking-oil recycler accepts bacon grease, meat drippings, butter, shortening, lard, or food-contaminated oil.
Before taking oil to a collection location, ask:
Do you accept household cooking oil?
Do you accept only plant-based oils, or also animal fats and grease?
Must food particles be strained out?
Is there a minimum or maximum quantity?
Must oil be in a specific container?
Is the service free, seasonal, appointment-only, or available year-round?
Do you accept oil from homes only, or also from restaurants and businesses?
How to prepare oil for a recycling drop-off
Allow the oil to cool completely.
Pour it into a clean, sturdy, leak-proof container with a secure lid, such as the original oil bottle or another nonbreakable container.
Label the container, especially if it contains a mixture of oils or fats.
Keep the container upright during transport.
Do not use a plastic bag alone because it can leak.
Follow the collection site’s instructions about filtering, container size, and whether to leave the container behind.
Cooking-oil recycling is not available everywhere, but many municipalities offer seasonal or year-round programs. Earth911 recommends checking local waste and recycling providers, wastewater authorities, or household hazardous-waste programs for collection options.
If recycling is not available
If no local collection or recycling option is available, dispose of cooled cooking oil in household trash if permitted by your local waste provider.
For liquid oil
Let the oil cool completely.
Pour it into a sturdy, sealable, nonbreakable container, such as the original oil bottle, an empty plastic container with a tight lid, or a disposable container approved by your waste provider.
Seal the container securely.
Place the sealed container in household trash, not recycling.
Do not pour oil into a plastic bag because it can leak. Republic Services recommends using a sealable disposable container, such as an empty milk carton or takeout container, rather than a bag.
For small amounts of grease
For small quantities of bacon grease, pan drippings, butter, shortening, or cooking fat:
Allow the grease to cool and solidify in the pan or a safe container.
Scrape it into a sealed container or wrap it securely.
Place it in household trash if local rules permit.
Wipe greasy pans with paper towels before washing to reduce the amount of grease entering the drain.
Do not place grease in curbside recycling or compost unless a local compost program specifically accepts it. Oils and grease can attract pests and interfere with composting processes.
What not to do
Do not pour used oil, grease, or fats into a sink, toilet, garbage disposal, floor drain, storm drain, or sewer.
Do not pour oil onto soil, lawns, sidewalks, driveways, or into bodies of water.
Do not mix cooking oil with motor oil, paint, chemicals, cleaning products, fuel, or other household hazardous waste.
Do not put liquid oil into curbside recycling.
Do not place hot oil in a glass container, plastic container, trash bag, or garbage can.
Do not assume your household hazardous-waste facility accepts cooking oil. Call first.
Do not use a grease-recycling program intended for restaurants unless it confirms that it accepts household quantities.
Find a cooking-oil recycling location
To find local options:
Search online for “used cooking oil recycling near me” plus your city, county, or ZIP code.
Contact your city or county solid-waste authority.
Contact your wastewater utility, sewer district, or public-works department.
Ask your household hazardous-waste facility whether it accepts used cooking oil.
Check with your garbage and recycling provider.
Search the Earth911 Cooking Oil Recycling Guide.
Check whether local community, holiday, or turkey-fryer oil-collection events are offered.
If you are in the Chicago area, Loyola University Chicago’s Institute of Environmental Sustainability has operated a used-cooking-oil donation program, but hours, accepted materials, and access can change. Confirm current instructions directly before visiting.
Commercial kitchens and restaurants
Restaurants, caterers, food trucks, schools, and other commercial kitchens usually have separate requirements. They may need grease interceptors, grease traps, used-oil storage containers, and contracts with licensed collection providers. Contact your local health department, wastewater utility, or commercial grease-recycling provider for business-specific requirements.
Quick checklist
Let oil cool completely before handling it.
Never pour cooking oil or grease down drains, toilets, garbage disposals, or storm drains.
Reuse oil only if it remains clean and suitable for cooking.
Store cooled used oil in a clean, dry, sturdy, leak-proof container with a tight lid.
Recycle through a local program if available.
If recycling is unavailable, seal cooled oil in a nonbreakable container and place it in household trash if local rules permit.
Keep food, chemicals, motor oil, and other contaminants out of cooking-oil collection containers.
Confirm local acceptance and preparation requirements before transporting oil.
Sources and Resources
Earth911, How to Recycle Cooking Oil
Republic Services, How to Dispose of Cooking Oil
Recycle by City Chicago, Does Chicago Offer Cooking-Oil Recycling?
SCARCE, Cooking Oil Recycling
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Managing Used Oil: Frequently Asked Questions for Businesses
Safety and Legal Notice
Connecting The Dots Project provides this guide for general educational and informational purposes only. It is not food-safety, plumbing, environmental, waste-management, recycling, hazardous-materials, legal, or emergency-response advice.
Local disposal rules, recycling options, accepted oils and fats, container requirements, program hours, fees, and business regulations vary by location, waste provider, collection program, and the type and condition of the material. Before transporting, recycling, or disposing of cooking oil or grease, contact your local waste authority, wastewater utility, household hazardous-waste program, waste hauler, or receiving facility for current instructions.
Do not handle hot oil or grease in a manner that could cause burns, fire, spills, or injury. Do not mix cooking oil with chemicals, fuels, motor oil, paint, solvents, cleaning products, or hazardous waste. If hot oil causes a fire, do not use water to extinguish it. Move to a safe location and call 911 or your local emergency number.
Mention of any organization, facility, company, collection program, or service is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an endorsement, affiliation, recommendation, or guarantee of acceptance, service quality, safety, or environmental performance.
Connecting The Dots Project does not guarantee that this information is complete, current, accurate, or suitable for every oil, grease, location, or situation. Use of this guide is at the reader’s own risk.