Bulletin 017 · regrind

What is regrind, and what becomes of a pallet that is ground

Last reviewed Nov 12, 20267 stages

The short answer

Regrind is plastic that has been chopped and ground into flake from scrap, rejected parts or surplus. A pallet that is ground becomes regrind, and regrind goes back into a mould.

The word is a trade term, so here it is in plain steps.

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A mesh screen sets the flake size. What passes goes on; the oversize goes back to the grinder.

Plastic goes in whole

A cracked HDPE pallet, a runner, a block. Anything that is solid plastic and the right resin. It is cut small enough to feed into a granulator.

A screen sets the size

Inside a granulator is a perforated screen. Material stays under the knives until it is small enough to drop through a hole. The size of the hole is the size of the flake.

What comes out

Flake. It can be bagged as regrind, melted into strands and cut into pellets, or fed straight to a moulder. The Cary Company says its own regrind is generally cheaper than virgin resin, and not FDA compliant.

Where it goes

Back to a mould. Injection moulding is the usual route for a pallet. Some pallets blend regrind and virgin resin, so ask for documentation of what is in them.

Regrind in the supply chain

Moulders add regrind to virgin resin or use it on its own, depending on the part. Some parts are made entirely from regrind, others use a share. The share depends on the strength and appearance the part needs.

Regrind from your own scrap

Plants often regrind their own runners and rejects and feed them straight back. Pallet regrind is different because it comes from outside the plant and needs checking for contamination first.

How it is sold

By the pound or by the ton, in bags, boxes or bulk. We state no price or minimum. A buyer sets a specification, and the seller documents what the material is.

Regrind vocabulary

Term	Meaning	Not to be confused with
Regrind	Ground flake from scrap	Pellets
Virgin resin	New resin never used in a product	Regrind
Recycled content	Part or all of a product from reused material	Recyclable
Post-industrial	Scrap from a factory or warehouse	Post-consumer

What the sources say

nelsoncompany.comThat used pallet is listed as pharma and food safe but not approved for direct food contact, in colours that vary.
nelsoncompany.comAdvanced composite material pallets are 100 percent recycled polyolefins, cheaper with a shorter life, and suit export where the pallet is not returned.
blog.containerexchanger.comThe 800 x 1200 mm Euro footprint is the second most popular plastic pallet size worldwide.
nelsoncompany.comFor products touching the pallet directly, stricter federal requirements may call for non-blended virgin HDPE; recycled pallets often meet general FDA needs.
nelsoncompany.com48 x 48 plastic pallets hold four 55-gallon drums without overhang; 48 x 45 matches North American auto parts bulk containers.
nelsoncompany.comA used Nelson 48 x 40 x 6.3 in HDPE one-piece pallet weighs 49 lb with 30,000 lb static, 5,000 lb dynamic and 2,200 lb racking ratings.
resource-recycling.comGreystone Logistics processed about 60 million pounds of recycled plastic in the year ended May 31, 2024, using damaged plastic pallets from a buy-back program among its feedstock.
nelsoncompany.comHDPE is the most common resin in plastic pallets; PP is more rigid and the page recommends it for unsupported racking.
palletenterprise.comIn 2011 a Quebec court ruled that CHEP's identified blue pallets belong to CHEP and cannot be sold.
nelsoncompany.comStatic capacity is the highest of the three ratings; racking is often the lowest; dynamic is always lower than static.
cabka.comCabka says plastic export pallets are exempt from ISPM-15 treatment, that there is no single export size, and that its nestable export designs include extra-lightweight and air-freight versions.
resource-recycling.comIn April 2017, HDPE HMW regrind from drums and IBCs was 24 to 27 cents per pound picked up in the US South (historical, not current).
rehrigpacific.comRehrig Pacific's rackable pallet has a two-piece snap-lock design for quick repair and options for FDA-approved colours, RFID and up to 15 percent black recycled content.
phsinc.comPHS lists its EXP 100 nestable (48 x 40 x 5.2 in) at 78 pallets per stack and 2,340 per truckload, and its EXP 116 (48 x 40 x 5.75 in, 15,000 lb static) at 40 per stack and 1,260 per truckload: a higher static rating comes with fewer pallets per stack.

Terms on this page

Regrind: Plastic ground from used or scrap parts into flakes for moulding again.
Flake: The small, irregular pieces a granulator makes. Flake is regrind before it is sold or melted.
HDPE: High-density polyethylene, resin code 2. The most common resin in plastic pallets; tough and moisture resistant.
Runners: Bottom rails that touch the floor or rack and carry the load.
Granulator: A machine with rotating knives that cuts plastic down to a set size, then pushes it through a screen.
Screen: The perforated plate under a granulator’s knives. The size of its holes sets the size of the flake.
Pellet: A small bead made by melting regrind and cutting it. Pellets feed into machines more evenly than flake.
Moulder: A manufacturer that melts regrind or pellets and forms them into parts, such as pallets.
Virgin resin: New, unblended resin that has not been through a product before.
Food contact: A material that touches food directly. Recycled content in food-contact use is held to rules a pallet deck usually is not.
Injection moulding: Pallet made by forcing molten resin into a mould at high pressure.
Contamination: Anything in a load that is not the target resin: labels, metal, dirt, wood, food residue or another plastic.
PP: Polypropylene. More rigid than HDPE and better with heat and harsh chemicals; used where rack stiffness matters.
Recycled-content pallet: A pallet moulded partly or wholly from post-industrial or post-consumer resin.

Questions people ask

What is regrind used for?

Moulding pallets, bins and industrial parts. Whatever a moulder can make from HDPE or PP flake.

Is regrind recycled?

Yes. It is ground from scrap and used again.

Is regrind safe for food?

Generally no. Do not assume it is.

Is regrind a lower grade than virgin resin?

It is a different grade. Properties vary with source, number of heats and contamination.

Is it safe?

For its normal uses, yes. For food contact, a recycled material needs documentation and often a different process.

Sources, reviewed Nov 12, 2026: The Cary Company, what is regrind; Racklify encyclopedia, recycled plastic pallets.