Sometimes, to make sure that the bottom of each bottle has a flat shape to help it stand up straight, another piece plastic is joined to the bottle during the moulding process.

This melted plastic is then injected into small moulds – that’s like a hollow space that shapes the plastic into long thin tubes.

Many plastic bottles are made of a substance called PET – that’s short for polyethylene terephthalate. It makes bottles that are lightweight and strong – useful when bottles are used for food and drinks.

Pellets of PET and recycled plastics are loaded into special ovens and heated to 260 degrees centigrade so that it melts.

Whilst plastic is a very versatile material, it can take hundreds of years to decompose naturally. That’s why it’s really important to recycle any that you use!

The tubes are then re-heated and placed in bottle shaped moulds – where high pressured air inflates them to fill the mould and to take their final shape.

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Samples will be measured to make sure they’re the right shape and size. They’ll also be squashed to see how strong they are. Once ready, the finished bottles will be boxed up, ready for dispatch.

Plasteurope.com is a business information platform for the European plastics industry. It is part of KI Kunststoff Information and PIE Plastics Information Europe, one of the leading content providers for the European plastics industry. We offer daily updated business news and reports, in-depth market analysis, polymer prices and other services for the international plastics industry, including a suppliers guide, career opportunities, a trade name directory and videos.

The final step is putting a cap onto the bottle. This is done by the food company, after the drink or food has been added.

In the latest series, Sidney is finding out about a whole load of everyday objects from tin cans and toothbrushes to plastic bottles and Pyrex…