Furthermore, to decrease and eventually eliminate paint solvents used in the production process, our North American plants are looking to implement the use of more effective water-based paints. Virtually 99 percent of all scrap metal generated by Toyota plants is now recycled. In addition, many waste materials like plastic wrap, paint solvents, used oil and packaging are recycled. We even recycle engine blocks which annually keeps 500,000 pounds of material from ending up in the landfill. Toyota vehicles are now 85 percent recyclable.
Huge shredders allow steel and non-ferrous materials to be recycled.
New processes also enable the recycling of car materials like urethane foam, copper, glass and plastic bumpers. At all Toyota plants, the use of returnable packaging serves as a major means of conservation, as wood pallets and cardboard boxes are used less frequently in the shipping process. Total recycling at our Kentucky plant, Toyota's largest outside of Japan, has now exceeded 100,000 tons per year. Bodine Aluminum, our plant in Missouri, uses more than 28,000 tons of adhesive-coated sand per year in its manufacturing process. The sand serves as a mold for aluminum-cast parts.