Als der US-Amerikaner und gebürtige Ungar Tom Szaky vor 14 Jahren TerraCycle gründete, bewegte ihn ein Grundgedanke: Abfall abschaffen. Dass das in einer Wegwerfgesellschaft, wie wir sie heute kennen, nicht von heute auf morgen funktionieren kann, versteht sich von selbst. Doch anstatt den Kopf deswegen in den Sand zu stecken und sich damit abzufinden, drehte Szaky den Spieß um. Was wäre, wenn man “Abfall” neu definiert und dem Begriff die Endgültigkeit entzieht?

TerraCycle them! TerraCycle makes consumer products from pre-consumer and post-consumer waste and by reusing other waste materials. It's free, simply join a baby food pouch brigade, collect your pouches in a box, print their free shipping label and mail them your waste. It's actually quite easy.

Amy Hash, a Portland parent at Northside Elementary, works with TerraCycle to collect waste and prevent it from going to the landfill.

TerraCycle, Inc. was founded in 2001 by then 20-year-old Tom Szaky who produced organic fertilizer by packaging liquefied worm poop in used soda bottles. “Along the way, we developed into this totally different company of recycling the unrecyclable,” Taylor explained. “We haven’t found anything yet that we can’t recycle.” The company takes products like plastic gloves, used coffee filters or empty deodorant tubes and recycles them into materials used to make backpacks, coasters, benches and more.

The New Jersey based Terracycle organizes programs for hard-to-recycle items, like baby food squeeze packs, Tetra Paks, toothbrushes, wisp flossers, Tupperware, Nespresso Capsules, Scotch Tape, shoes, wine boxes, pet food bags, pens, and more. While a few of these items can be recycled curbside, their mail-in system is a great option if your municipality doesn’t allow it.