How to Recycle the Unrecyclable - Terracycle shows the way
It’s encouraging to see the increasingly wide assortment and availability of products made from recycled materials, but there’s a problem on the other end: A lot of things aren’t accepted for recycling by curbside collection services, at least not in the US.
As this recent article in Fast Company details, it’s not currently profitable for recyclers to take much beyond the most common, high volume items, like aluminum, paper, and a select few types of plastic. You can forget about candy and snack wrappers. Too many comingled materials, too difficult to create a consistent, usable result on the other end.
But, thanks to Terracycle and companies like mega food producer Kraft Foods teaming up, that’s changing, on a potentially huge scale.
Continuing the innovative thinking that started with their Worm Poop garden products being bottled in cleaned and reused soda bottles, this time they will take things like energy bar wrappers, braiding them to make purses and backpacks. Nabisco cookie wrappers will find new life as waterproof fabric for shower curtains and umbrellas. And things like Kool Aid drink pouches will transform into tote and handbags.
Enabling all this to happen will be thousands of Brigades.These brigades cover everything from the above mentioned items to the oft shunned yogurt containers. Cork even sees some action here. In all cases, brigades get from $0.02 to as much as $0.05 per item sent in, via free shipping, to Terracycle.
Brands such as Stonyfield, Clif Bar, Bear Naked, and Capri Sun are all sponsors of brigades for their respective categories. Anybody from individuals to schools, non-profits and community groups can participate in a brigade. When you add a monetary incentive to the recycling equation, take out the logistical speed bumps of shipping and the costs of it, and have messages on the targeted products about this unique opportunity to divert what would otherwise be landfill bound waste, you’ve got a powerfully impactful thing happening here.
Readers: What are other ways you’ve seen or participate in recycling/upcycling into new uses? How is recycling being encouraged in your community? Have you used any of these new TerraCycle products? What’s been your experience?
Further reading on recycled/upcycled products:
An Example of How to Go Green with Integrity: Act2GreenSmart Bags : Ecopreneurist
Journals, Journals, Journals: Recycled, Upcycled, and Handmade : Crafting A Green World
Recycle Your Water Bottles on Your Laptop : Ecopreneurist
Terracycle is a great company. They were putting product out there long before it was really profitable, and they have helped put sustainable products on the map. Thanks for the post!
Alter the eco and keep up the good fight!
Adam
http://www.twilightearth.com
You should check out these recycled magazine gift bows at Bellybuzz’s Etsy shop.
Great sites you two.
Ditto to what Adam said. TerraCycle is a great company that does more than create fabulous products from materials previously destined for landfills. it also offers bricks and mortar companies an excellent, targeted way to implement a recycling program. For example, I work with a children’s retailer who is about to become a TerraCycle Cookie Wrapper Brigade collection location. The store wins two ways: they now have a turn-key, recycling program that also brings their target consumers into the store (Oreo Cookie consumers, aka moms, are their prime customer). In this case they are also planning to sell the final products in a perfect example of cross promotion.
By creating a market for cookie wrappers, juice pouches, energy bar wrappers, etc… Terracycle provides a variety of businesses an easy way to implement a great recycling program with terrific promotional benefits.
Thanks for the info on all these cool products.
It’s really amazing to see how fast recycled products are progressing. 5 Years ago NO ONE would be into this stuff, now that it is the hipster thing to do, it just keeps getting better.
The more time I spend working in the green space, the more I respect innovative companies like this.
-Chris
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Hi!
I am very interested in TerraCycle and its products and also their innovative recycling program. I belong to a socially responsible investment group and this is just the kind of investment we are looking for. Problem, I cannot hook up to their site. I also could not hook up to any of the links you provided in your article.
I would like to get a hold of Tom Szaky or someone from his company. Do you have any other contact information? Thanks, Lonnie