🟣 Take It Back
Points de collecte
The shop that sold it takes it back.
Shops, pharmacies and charities collect these free of charge. No bin, no déchèterie trip needed.
Note
Letter codes are SMECTOM’s own: A association · P pharmacy · M shop · ES specialist firm.
What goes here
Pharmacy (P)
- Leftover medicines capsules, syrup — opened
- Syringes & needles
- Thermometers
Shop take-back (M)
- Light bulbs & tubes
- Batteries (small)
- Car batteries
- Gas bottles
- Aluminium coffee capsules
- Ink cartridges
- E-cigarettes
- Screens & phones
- Sports & leisure kit
- Shopping bags (worn-out cabas)
Shop or charity (M+A)
- Sofas
- Fridges
- Toys & games
Charity (A)
- Leather goods bags, belts, wallets
Specialist firm (ES)
- Asbestos
- Dead animals
Not here — where it goes instead
🔴 Or the déchèterie
Most of the shop take-back items are also accepted at the déchèterie — bulbs, batteries, screens, cartridges, e-cigarettes, sofas, fridges, toys. Whichever trip you are making anyway. See Déchèterie — Recycling Centre.
🟢 Never the bin
Batteries, bulbs, medicines and syringes must never go in general waste — they are hazardous and they injure the people who sort our waste. See Green Bin — General Waste.
🩷 Textile bank
Clothes, shoes and linen go to the textile bank rather than a charity shop counter — even when worn out. See Textile Bank.
🟡 Yellow bin
Empty pill strips and empty medicine packaging go straight in the yellow bin. Only unused or part-used medicine goes to the pharmacy. See Yellow Bin — Recyclables.
Handling
- Take it on the next trip. Keep a box by the door for shop take-back items.
- Medicines: no packaging. The pharmacy wants the medicine, not the box.
Printable sheet
Take It Back — A4 sheet (PDF) — print at 100 % scale, single sided. All nine sheets together: all-sheets.pdf.
Items marked † are the general French sorting rule for this stream, not entries in SMECTOM’s Mémo Tri 2026. Everything else on this page is taken from the mémo. See Waste Sorting Guide for the overview and Waste & Recycling Collection for the pickup schedule and access card.