Abstract We tried to recycle waste Tetra Pak cardboards, which contain aluminium as a step in the prevention of the environmental pollution caused by municipal solid wastes and as methods of achieving economical worth from these. The composite prepared with urea–formaldehyde resin was harder relative to that prepared with polyvinyl acetate based glue. The target cardboard density and thickness were 0.5 g/cm 3 and 3.0 cm, respectively. We were unable to obtain information on the effect of matrix: resin ratio on hardness of materials. Samples were easily damaged by water, suggesting that these materials were not suitable for use in high-humidity media.