Are you familiar with TerraCycle?  They are a company dedicated to creating unique products made from your "trash". A big congratulations goes out to them!  The TerraCycle Drink Pouch Brigrade Progam has saved 50 million drink pouches from being put in landfills and contributed a MILLION dollars to schools and non-profits...and now they are giving one My OKC Mommy Reader one of their totes!

TerraCycle is a pioneer of 'upcycling', which is the process of directly reusing materials that would otherwise have a very short lifecycle to make more-durable, longer-lasting products. There are now three free upcycling programmes in Britain, called Brigades, collecting yogurt pots, coffee pcks and discs, and baby food pouches.

Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft has also revisited packaging and advertising. Kraft ditched movie tie-ins on packaging, and nutritional information is more prominent. Most Lunchables trays are now clear, because moms said they wanted to be able to see the food inside. Because the plastic trays aren't recyclable, Kraft moved to avoid "green" criticism by partnering with TerraCycle to convert used Lunchables containers into lunch boxes and pencil cases.

Just about every school - public or private - needs money. And I'm not against it by any means. This year I'm chairing the fund raising committee for my younger son's school. My goal is to incorporate projects that teach as well as bring in money. But In my quest, I've found another that I must share. The company is called TerraCycle, and its aim is to make eco-friendly, affordable consumer products from waste.

That’s where TerraCycle comes into play. The goal of TerraCycle is to prevent snack and drink containers from ending up in landfills or being incinerated. TerraCycle helps band consumers together into groups — called “Brigades” — to return used packaging in bulk to TerraCycle. Returned goods are then cleaned out and transformed into new products including bags, coolers, clip boards, picture frames and kites. In addition, for every package returned the brigade earns money to put towards a charity of their choice or, if the team is from a school or non-profit organization, they can keep the money to further their mission.  It is a win-win program: people can reduce their waste while raising money for a good cause. As word spreads about TerraCycle more and more snack and beverage companies are joining the program, meaning even more packaging can be returned and re-purposed. Some major companies whose wrappers can be sent back to TerraCycle include: Stonyfield, Capri Sun, Frito Lay, Kraft, Mars Wrigley, Kashi, Aveeno, Colgate, and Ziploc. The recycled products that TerraCycle produces are then sold at major retailers, including Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and K-Mart. The end products are labeled as TerraCycle products, so consumers know they are supporting a good cause and creating demand for the program. According to the TerraCycle website, there are 11,597,783 people collecting trash with TerraCycle brigades, and over one billion units of waste have already been collected and re-purposed into 186 different products. If that doesn’t already sound good enough, these efforts also helped raise $1.2 Million for various schools, non profits, and charities across the country.

went nuts about TerraCycle after learning about them for the first time on Garbage Moguls. After a little research, I decided they were worth writing about. To initiate my series of Extraordinary Business Savvy Folks, I began with Tom Szaky and his crew. To recap, this Princeton guy was making worm poo. He needed something to contain all those worm poo. He collected soda bottles. Worm poo turned into insta-gold. He went into garage business with his friend selling worm poo. After that, they evolved into upcycling and recycling garbage into sellable goods. Sounds awesome, right? Try telling that to someone with a straight face! Now, he started off so small and so simple. He wanted TerraCycle to be the Walmart of garbage. Today, generating millions of dollars in revenue, I believe he succeeded.

DRINK POUCH BRIGADE SPONSORSHIP HITS $1 MILLION MARK FOR SCHOOLS 50 Million Drink Pouches Redeemed Through TerraCycle Fund Local School Programs Nationwide A million dollars can go a long way in cash-strapped schools and nonprofits.  And, when all that’s required is to save items from landfills, it almost sounds too good to be true.  True it is. Schools and nonprofits across the country have now earned $1 million through the TerraCycle Drink Pouch Brigade program.

A million dollars can go a long way in cash-strapped schools and nonprofits.  And, when all that’s required is to save items from landfills, it almost sounds too good to be true.  True it is. Schools and nonprofits across the country have now earned $1 million through the TerraCycle Drink Pouch Brigade program. The Capri Sun beverage brand was one of the earliest supporters of TerraCycle, a company that collects would-be trash and turns it into useful items.  The collection program, called the Drink Pouch Brigade, takes place mostly in schools, where children choose to deposit used pouches in special receptacles rather than throw them away.  In participating schools, each used drink pouch collected and sent to TerraCycle earns two cents, with the funds going toward needed educational programs and resources.

DRINK POUCH BRIGADE SPONSORSHIP HITS $1 MILLION MARK FOR SCHOOLS 50 Million Drink Pouches Redeemed Through TerraCycle Fund Local School Programs Nationwide

A big hug and 'high five' goes to TerraCycle. They have paid out $1 million dollars through their innovative program which turns trash into useful items like bags and ... fences. I've always been a huge fan of TerraCyle and have named myself the (officially unofficial) president of the TerraCycle fan club. (Dear TerraCycle, I really hope that's ok. You're the best!) TerraCycle is one of those super-dooper organizations that helps make this world a better place. The entire TerraCycle business model works around taking trash, recycling it and turning it into a new product.