Material Recovery Facility (MRF), noun

Pronounced “merf.” The place all your recycling goes to be sorted and packaged into basic material components, then sold to buyers for reuse.

Picture extensive conveyor belts with workers in bright yellow vests sorting through loads of rapidly-passing materials. Recyclables are also sorted using various filters, optical sensors, and even magnets. Once separated, the materials are packed into bales, then it’s up to the MRF to sell the materials to buyers with will make it into something “new.”