The SPI Resin Identification Coding System (%u201CSPI Symbols%u201D) is a set of symbols … The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) introduced its resin coding system in order to identify the various resins found in plastic bottles and rigid containers and to make sorting and recycling plastic bottles and containers easier for recyclers in Canada. The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) introduced a code system in 1988 that helps with recycling plastic by numbers. In 1988 the plastics industry, through the Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc., introduced its voluntary resin identification coding system.

[Guidelines p. 23] The code has no other purpose.



The number in the triangle indicates the type of plastic. Almost all plastic products bear the general recycling symbol: a triangle formed by three circling arrows. SPI Coding System Background To facilitate correct plastic waste sorting of bottles and containers commonly found in the residential waste stream for the purposes of recycling, the SPI Resin Identification Symbol System, also known as the material container coding system, was created by The Society of Plastics Industry (SPI) in 1988. A growing number of communities were implementing recycling programs in an effort to decrease the volume of waste subject to rising tipping fees at landfills.