You Catch 'Em, We'll Recycle 'Em

After the parades pass by, what do you do with all those beads? Audubon Nature Institute has a way for you to recycle those beads and keep them from clogging storm drains and landfills. 

Mardi Gras bead collection boxes are set up in front of Audubon Zoo and at Audubon Louisiana Nature Center where anyone can drop off unwanted beads. The donated beads will go to Arc of Greater New Orleans to be recycled and used in future parades to continue the fun of carnival another year.

Last year, revelers dropped off more than two tons of beads at Audubon – that’s almost as much as a full-grown Asian elephant weighs! We hope to recycle even more beads this year. Recycling barely makes a dent in the number of beads thrown and discarded every year during carnival. It’s estimated that about 25 million pounds of beads are thrown during the city’s parades yearly, but only a small portion of those are recycled. Audubon is committed to changing that statistic by making it easy to recycle and keep beads out of landfills and storm drains and away from nature.

Audubon will be accepting beads for recycling now through February 19, 2026. Donation boxes are located outside Audubon Zoo and at Audubon Louisiana Nature Center in Joe Brown Park.