Waste not want not used to be our grandparents motto. You’d think recycling material would be cheaper than having to make new material.
When I was a kid, you ALWAYS brought back the soda bottles to the store. It was just part of the deal, I thought.
The glass bottles were sent back to the plant, washed out, and re-filled.
Don't really know why we got away from that. Aluminum cans aren't any more convenient (except for the opening of them maybe). And you can't recycle them without a WHOLE lot of effort.