How brands are making it easier to recycle
When it comes to tricky items, it isn’t always easy to know the best way to dispose of them.
Can it all be recycled? Or can only part of it be recycled? If so, which bits? Or is it for the bin? Or is it compostable? What’s the most sustainable way to dispose of it?
In order to help consumers make the right decisions, Colgate has launched a UK recycling service for toothpaste tubes and toothbrushes in partnership with TerraCycle.
Multiple Brand Recycling Schemes
Colgate isn’t the only one making waves – other brands are now teaming up to make recycling their waste easier and simpler. A prime example is Walkers Crisps, who have enabled snackers to post empty crisp packets – in an envelope – for free directly to the recycling company.
Walkers also partnered with TerraCycle to launch their scheme, with the packets being turned into various things like benches, watering cans, and plant pots!
They have pledged to make all of their packaging fully recyclable, compostable, or biodegradable by 2025, and the scheme is a great step towards meeting that target.
Walkers described the partnership with TerraCycle as, “the UK’s first nationwide recycling scheme for crisp packets,” and will accept any brand of crisp packets – it isn’t limited to just Walkers.
The scheme is expected to launch in December 2018 and will hopefully pave the way for other retailers to adopt a similar approach to recycling.
In a similar vein, Kellogg’s have also unveiled their recycling scheme for Pringles packaging. Their scheme will also go live in December alongside Walkers.
About TerraCycle’s Approach
TerraCycle, in their own words, is, “Eliminating the Idea of Waste by recycling the non-recyclable.”
They pride themselves on being able to collect and recycle almost any form of waste, from individuals through to businesses and manufacturers across 20 countries.
It offers free recycling programmes for many hard-to-recycle pieces of waste, from toiletries to cigarettes, and now the range of Walkers crisps and Colgate products!
TerraCycle repurposes waste through circular methods (reuse, recycling, or upcycling), and will never incinerate waste or dump it in landfill.
TerraCycle also composts all the organic waste collected, and by volume, recycles over 97% of the waste it collects.
They focus on “hard-to-recycle” materials and develop circular solutions for otherwise linear systems, diverting millions of pounds of materials from landfills and incinerator.
Sustainability is part and parcel of their approach, with their global offices made entirely from upcycled waste! To spread the word of everything they do, TerraCycle created a critically-acclaimed TV show, called, “Human Resources.”
Thanks to TerraCycle, over 80 million people are recycling!
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