On April 16, Apple released its latest annual environmental report, stating that it has made important progress in product materials, supply chain energy and water management, including milestones such as using an average of 30% recycled materials across its entire line of products, all cobalt used in batteries coming from recycled sources, and achieving 100% recycling of rare earth elements in magnets.
According to the report, Apple currently achieves 30% recycled materials in all devices. The cobalt used in all batteries is recycled cobalt, and the rare earth elements in all magnets come from recycled resources. In terms of packaging, the company has achieved 100% use of fiber-based materials for all product packaging, avoiding the use of more than 15,000 metric tons of plastic since 2020. Apple points out that this amount of plastic reduction is equivalent to approximately 500 million plastic water bottles since announcing related goals in 2020.
In terms of energy and water resources, Apple said that its global facilities are 100% powered by renewable energy, and the cumulative scale of renewable energy purchased in the supply chain has exceeded 20 gigawatts. The company said that 55% of its corporate water use has been replenished and that it has saved approximately 17 billion gallons of water through cooperation with suppliers.
"At Apple, we have always believed in leaving the world a better place than we found it, and that commitment runs through everything we do," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement. He emphasized that these milestones in global environmental protection show that ambitious goals themselves can become powerful innovation engines, and the company will continue to work hard to further advance relevant work on the existing basis. Apple also reiterated that its overall goal is still to achieve carbon neutrality in the entire industry chain by 2030.
The report also revealed Apple’s new layout in recycling technology. During 2025, the company commissioned a new electronics recycling production line called "Cora" at its advanced recycling center in California. Apple said that “Cora” improves the material recovery rate during equipment disassembly through precision crushing and advanced sensing technology. In addition, Apple has also developed the Automatic Recycling Identification System (ARIS) for electronic waste classification, which uses deep learning technology to identify different types of discarded equipment to improve the efficiency of the recycling process.
Apple said the relevant data comes from the company’s latest Environmental Progress Report, which is open to the public. Sabih Khan, Apple's chief operating officer, pointed out that from expanding the application of recycled content to eliminating plastics in packaging, the company hopes to push the team to continue to move forward on the goal of "benefiting people and the planet" by setting higher standards. The release time of this report also deliberately echoes the upcoming Earth Day (April 22), highlighting Apple's external posture and promotional intentions on environmental issues.