If you've purchased a product from Apple over the past year, it probably contains a higher amount of recycled material than ever before. In case you weren't aware, you can also recycle all of the company's fiber-based packaging now that it has eliminated all plastic use.
Apple continues to chart a course toward carbon neutrality by 2030, hitting new climate milestones across emissions, recycling and water use, according to its 2025 Environmental Progress Report.
A record 30% of the products the company shipped last year contain recycled content. Apple also uses 100% recycled cobalt in its batteries and 100% recycled rare-earth elements in its magnets.
The newly introduced MacBook Neo, in particular, is a point of pride for the company. It boasts the highest recycled content and the lowest carbon footprint of any Apple laptop -- in addition to being the most repairable MacBook in ages.
"These milestones in our work to protect the planet show that ambitious goals can also be powerful engines of innovation," said Apple CEO Tim Cook in a statement. "And as always, we'll keep pushing to build on this progress even more."
As the climate crisis continues to take a toll on the planet, sparking more unpredictable extreme weather events, it's important that the world's wealthiest companies do their part to minimize, and ideally eliminate, their environmental impact. Using more recycled materials reduces mining of Earth's natural resources, protecting ecosystems and the local communities that rely on them. But ultimately, the most impactful change any company can make is to eliminate the emissions that are causing our planet to rapidly warm.
Apple's 2025 report showed that over the past year, the company has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 60% compared to its 2015 baseline. Apple is working toward achieving carbon neutrality across all of its operations, including transitioning its entire value chain to clean electricity, by 2030.
This is an ambitious target, for which Apple should be commended. Many companies choose to attach their climate and sustainability goals to timeframes pointing to the future -- 2050 is a popular target -- that don't align with the urgency of the climate crisis and the tipping points fast approaching. By committing to the 2030 goals, Apple has to be bullish about making changes to the way it does business now, rather than kicking them into the long grass.
The company is already carbon neutral in its corporate operations, but it now needs to make progress in transforming its value chain. For the elements of its emissions that are hard to eliminate completely -- such as business travel that relies on flying -- the company has committed to carbon offsets. To do this, it purchases carbon credits that support two projects -- one in Guatemala and another in China.
Overall, the company is making serious progress toward its lofty goals. In an ideal world, we would see Apple and other tech giants commit to proving it's possible to go beyond carbon neutrality and net zero to become carbon negative. This is the best way to protect our planet for future generations.
