Throughout Trash Tycoon, a friendly guide named Tara pops up with tips on how to get more points through "upcycling," turning refuse into useful products. It's an education in wasting less and making more, which just happens to be the business model of TerraCycle , the for-profit company behind Trash Tycoon. When it comes to waste (and worms), Terracycle is an industry leader, in a good way. The spunky fertilizer company has been making a business of refuse for 10 years. They started out turning trash into plant food and have since expanded into making all kinds of products .