Zinc meets all requirements for recycling because it has one unique quality: it can be melted down without any decline in quality using only very little energy. High prices for zinc scrap and zinc residues make it possible for zinc collection and utilization systems to operate at a profit without any subsidies.

The product-related recycling rate for zinc scrap varies between 80 and 95 per cent. As the energy needed to recycle zinc sheet amounts to no more than five per cent of its initial production, there is currently a large demand for scrap zinc sheet zinc in Germany. Worldwide about two million tons of zinc get recycled every year. Brass scrap is one of the largest recycling sources for zinc. About 600,000 tons of zinc per year are recycled worldwide and then re-introduced into the brass-zinc circuit. Zinc which has been diecast, especially from scrapped cars and old household appliances, is a valuable resource for new zinc production. Zinc sheet from roofs, house fronts, and gutters, is a first-rate material viable for producing renewed zinc products. After separating steel and zinc, zinc coatings on steel scrap can be used again for galvanizing purposes.

Galvanizing residues with high zinc concentrations are separated physically and then used as raw materials for primary and secondary zinc production. The greatest amount of zinc used in long-lasting products has an estimated service life ranging from several dozens of years to one hundred years or more.

It is interesting to note that on the basis of historical consumption patterns, it can be estimated that 80 per cent of the zinc available for recycling has been recycled.