Clever Cologne Vendor Hacks Bottle Recycling Machine for Massive Profits
By Editor • September 10, 2026 • 1 min read
A resourceful drinks vendor in Cologne, Germany, has found a way to exploit a bottle-recycling machine, netting a staggering €47,000 by recycling the same bottle over 177,000 times.
Investing around €5,000 in modifications, the vendor was able to trick the machine into continuously accepting the same plastic bottle. Each time a bottle is recycled, the machine shreds it and issues a receipt that can be exchanged for cash, allowing the vendor to reap financial rewards without the need for new bottles.
This unconventional scheme raises questions about the integrity of recycling processes and the lengths to which individuals will go to capitalize on them. The vendor's ingenuity has certainly paid off, but it also highlights potential vulnerabilities in waste management systems.
Source: boingboing.net
