Whether you go to Taco Bell for the tacos, burritos, or Crunchwrap Supreme, you're likely getting a few hot sauce packets with your order. The fast-food chain's spicy condiments—which range in heat levels from mild to diablo—are a signature part of the brand, but they're also a major source of single-use plastic. Each year, more than 8 billion discarded Taco Bell sauce packets end up in landfills. To tackle this problem, the company is launching a program to recycle the tiny packages at the bottom of your bag. NPR reports that the new sustainability initiative is a collaboration between Taco Bell and the recycling firm TerraCycle. Once customers have squeezed their preferred sauce over their food, they're encouraged to save the used packets in a cardboard box instead of tossing them in the trash. As the container starts filling up, they can create an account with TerraCycle and print a free shipping label to stick to the box. The customer then ships the package via UPS, and TerraCycle handles converting the plastic into raw materials for reuse. The project is Taco Bell's attempt to make its packaging practices a little gentler on the environment. Originally, the company wanted to set up packet collection boxes in stores, but with the majority of its meals now being ordered for takeout or delivery, giving customers the option to mail their recyclables makes more sense. The program may not be worth it for the occasional Taco Bell patron, but it could be appealing to anyone with a drawer full of fire hot sauce packets at home. You can learn more about the initiative and sign up to take part here. Hopefully this effort is more successful than these discontinued menu items from Taco Bell's history.

Taco Bell is collaborating with international recycling leader TerraCycle to give its sauce packets a second life that doesn't involve a landfill. According to Taco Bell, fans know that the restaurant chain has a mild obsession with its hot sauce packets, with 8.2 billion sauce packets used in the U.S. each year. Taco Bell is the first quick service restaurant brand to partner with TerraCycle to tackle recycling flexible film packets. The companies will announce details of a national U.S. recycling pilot program later this year, Taco Bell said. According to Taco Bell, customer participation will be easy and will involve free shipping. TerraCycle is known for collecting traditionally non-recyclable materials, cleaning them, then melting and remolding them into hard plastic that can be used to make new recycled products. "In the food industry today, there is no widely available solution for recycling the flexible film packets that are so commonly used for condiments," Liz Matthews, Taco Bell's Global Chief Food Innovation Officer, said. "So, we're thrilled to leverage the expertise of TerraCycle to recycle our iconic sauce packet packaging in a way that's as bold and innovative as our menu." The pilot launch of the program slated to take place later this year, and its results will determine how to move forward, including potential program expansion. "Now more than ever, consumers don't want to sacrifice the planet no matter how delicious the meal," TerraCycle CEO and Founder, Tom Szaky, said. "Together, Taco Bell and TerraCycle will push the quick service industry by finally finding a way to recycle this type of product. This effort takes us one step closer to keeping packets out of landfills and our mission of 'Eliminating the Idea of Waste.'

New York (CNN Business)Taco Bell's plastic sauce packets have a short life. After all, what else are you supposed to do with them after they're squeezed to death?

That's soon changing: The fast food chain is partnering with recycling company TerraCycle to give its packets a "spicier second life that doesn't involve a landfill," Taco Bell said in a press release.

Taco Bell said that more than 8 billion sauce packets are used every year in the United States, a massive number that's potentially environmentally damaging. About 710 million metric tons of plastic will pollute the environment by 2040 if action isn't taken, according to a recent study published in "Science."

Specific details of how the program will work weren't released. However, Taco Bell did reveal that the recycling pilot program will launch later this year and that participation will be simple and involve free shipping. Its ultimate goal is for the discarded sauce packets have an "exciting future as something totally new."

Taco Bell has emerged as an unlikely player in the climate change crusade. The fast-food chain announced Monday that it has partnered with TerraCycle, a New Jersey-based business that specializes in recycling hard-to-recycle materials, in an effort to move beyond its single-use hot sauce packets.

While the condiment packets aren’t traditionally recyclable, TerraCycle intends to give them a second life by creating “flexible film packets” that can be recycled instead of getting sent directly to a landfill. A pilot program with the recyclable packets is slated to launch later this year.

According to a press release, though this change might seem small, it has the potential to make a big impact on the environment. Believe it or not, Taco Bell goes through 8.2 billion sauce packets in the U.S. alone each year, so transforming these packets into something that can finally be recycled is a pretty big deal because it helps the chain generate far less waste.

“In the food industry today, there is no widely available solution for recycling the flexible film packets that are so commonly used for condiments,” Liz Matthews, Taco Bell’s Global Chief Food Innovation Officer, said in a statement. “So, we’re thrilled to leverage the expertise of TerraCycle to recycle our iconic sauce packet packaging in a way that’s as bold and innovative as our menu.”

Though Taco Bell didn’t explain all the details of how this recycling program might work, the chain promised “easy” customer participation that would include free shipping, hinting that Taco Bell eaters could recycle packets from home that they accumulate via drive-thru and take-out orders.

As for TerraCycle’s role? The company plans to clean the used sauce packets and then melt them down so they can be remolded into hard plastic that can be used to make “new recycled products.”

“Now more than ever, consumers don’t want to sacrifice the planet no matter how delicious the meal,” TerraCycle CEO and founder Tom Szaky explained. “Together, Taco Bell and TerraCycle will push the quick service industry by finally finding a way to recycle this type of product. This effort takes us one step closer to keeping packets out of landfills and our mission of ‘Eliminating the Idea of Waste.’”

Additionally, the ability to recycle sauce packets is very important in achieving Taco Bell’s goal of “making all consumer-facing packaging recyclable, compostable, or reusable by 2025” in its eateries around the world. The results of this pilot recycling program are expected to help Taco Bell determine the best, most environmentally friendly answers moving forward, and if the pilot program goes well, it may lead to an expansion.

Dousing your favorite Taco Bell order with obscene amounts of Fire sauce may still be a questionable choice for your digestion, but it no longer has to be one for the planet. The beloved chain has announced a new partnership with international recycling leader TerraCycle on a nationwide recycling pilot program of their single-use sauce packets. According to a press release, about 8.2 billion packets of Taco Bell sauce are used in the United States each year. Unfortunately, those little plastic sachets are currently single-use and not recyclable, which means they end up in landfills. In fact, the fast-food industry as a whole doesn't have a good solution for recycling condiment packets, which are made of flexible film packaging. Enter TerraCycle, a company renowned for collecting traditionally non-recyclable materials to make new recycled products. Thanks to this partnership, your Taco Bell hot sauce packet could soon go on to have a second life as outdoor furniture, a plastic shipping pallet, storage container, flooring tile, or material used at playgrounds and athletic fields, according to Nation's Restaurant News. While all the details are not yet available, Taco Bell will need customer participation for this program to work, but the company promises that it will be simple and will require shipping your used hot sauce packets back for free. The pilot program is slated to start later this year and its results will determine the most viable solutions for Taco Bell moving forward. For more on the latest fast-food news, check out Taco Bell Just Opened a Futuristic New Location In This Major City, and don't forget to sign up for our newsletter to get the latest restaurant news delivered straight to your inbox.

Taco Bell will team up with Terracycle to recycle its hot sauce packets, with 8.2 billion sauce packets used in the U.S. each year. Taco Bell is the first QSR brand to partner with TerraCycle to tackle recycling flexible film packets. While the companies will announce details of a national U.S. recycling pilot program later this year, customer participation will reportedly be easy and will incorporate free shipping. TerraCycle is known for collecting traditionally non-recyclable materials, cleaning them, then melting and remolding them into hard plastic that can be used to make new recycled products. "In the food industry today, there is no widely available solution for recycling the flexible film packets that are so commonly used for condiments," saysd Liz Matthews, Taco Bell's global chief food innovation officer. "So, we're thrilled to leverage the expertise of TerraCycle to recycle our iconic sauce packet packaging in a way that's as bold and innovative as our menu." According to Taco Bell, the ability to recycle sauce packets is very important in achieving its goal of making all consumer-facing packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2025 in restaurants across the globe. The pilot launch is slated to take place later this year and its results will determine the most viable solutions moving forward, including potential program expansion. "Now more than ever, consumers don't want to sacrifice the planet no matter how delicious the meal," says TerraCycle CEO and founder, Tom Szaky. "Together, Taco Bell and TerraCycle will push the quick service industry by finally finding a way to recycle this type of product. This effort takes us one step closer to keeping packets out of landfills and our mission of 'Eliminating the Idea of Waste.'" For customers who may already be eager to recycle their sauce packets, there are steps they currently can take to leave a lighter footprint. Be sure to check the specific recycling and composting guidelines of your local municipality when disposing packaging, and if you don't use each packet from your Taco Bell order, save it for later to add some kick to other meals. For more information, visit www.terracycle.com and www.tacobell.com/news.