Learn what to do with used cooking oil and where to recycle it

Used cooking oils are a serious problem for home plumbing and Hillsborough County's wastewater collection system. Cooking oil that is poured down the drain gels and solidifies inside pipes, sewage lines and sewage lift stations, constricting water flow. That can back up home plumbing, and also cause equipment to malfunction, leading to sewage spills, overflows onto streets, and foul odors in homes and neighborhoods.

Hillsborough County's Cooking Oil Recycling Effort is for residential cooking oil. "Commercial and industrial customers must contact a Hillsborough County Registered Grease Hauler for cooking oil disposal. This list can be requested by emailing GotGrease@HCFL.gov.

Cooking oil DOs and DON’Ts | Reglas acerca del aceite de cocina

How I can make a difference?

  1. Carefully pour cooled cooking oil into a large, sturdy plastic or wax-coated container, such as the original container, a juice carton, or a Cooking Oil Recycling Effort jug
  2. Cap the container and store in a cool, safe location
  3. Don’t mix the oil with any other liquids or products
  4. Once the container is full, bring it to a Cooking Oil Recycling Effort station or to one of our Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers

Request a presentation 

Did you know that Hillsborough County Public Utilities offers complementary educational presentations to community groups on the Cooking Oil Recycling Effort (CORE)/Unflushables Program? Standard presentations can be adjusted depending on your group size, and most presentations are 15-20 minutes in length. 

*Presentation requests must be submitted at least two weeks in advance, and please note that some presentation may not be fulfilled due to demand, scheduling conflicts and/or location.

Request a CORE presentation

Locations of CORE stations

Bring your container of used cooking oil and grease to one of these locations at any time. Look for the brightly-colored, free-standing cabinet with the Cooking Oil Recycling Effort identification. See map and click on the categories below the map for location details.

Public utility service center

Libraries

Parks & Rec Centers

Other county locations

HHW collection centers

Recycled cooking oil is also accepted at Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Centers on select Saturdays monthly. Check out all of the locations and hours at the HHW Collection Centers.

Contact

For more information contact our Public Utilities Grease Management Program at (813) 272-5977, ext. 43515.

Learn about other things that should never go down the drain

Last Modified: 8/26/2024, 3:21:40 PM

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