Tom Szaky started TerraCycle to reaffirm his belief that Nothing is Waste and to give waste a second life through recycling  By Bismita Rabha   In the recent decades, there has been a considerable change in the youth’s mindset towards private businesses. More start-up companies have mushroomed, driving the economy, creating employment, and producing waste. When combined with the pre-existing corporations that used more conventional ways of production, the waste ending up in landfills has reached unimaginable levels in the 21st century. With more emphasis on climate action by people, a wave of change is on its way.   Determined to take environmental responsibility seriously, Tom Szaky started TerraCycle - a recycle solution for every kind of waste, even the ones with a “nonrecyclable” label. Redefining the concept of waste and encouraging waste to be given a second life through recycling.   Princeton University dining hall: The birthplace of an idea In spite of dealing in millions presently, TerraCycle started out as a vermicomposting model. Tom reminisces about the time when he conceptualised the business. “I got the idea for TerraCycle as a college freshman at Princeton University in 2001. The original business model was vermicomposting (converting food waste into worm poop), packaging it in used soda bottles and selling the resulting fertiliser. I sourced the food waste from the Princeton dining hall’s leftovers and in order to find a larger supply of packaging, I recruited the help of local students to collect used soda bottles - essentially creating a precursor to our current free recycling programs which student organisations and community groups use as a fundraising activity.”   TerraCycle no longer produces fertiliser, but has pioneered recycling solutions for some of the world’s toughest garbage problems, proving that everything is technically ‘recyclable’ and developing solutions for nearly every waste stream you can think of, including drink pouches, used toothbrushes, cigarette butts and even dirty diapers! In short, TerraCycle takes waste that is not recyclable through conventional methods (i.e. your municipality’s curbside recycling program) and turns it into raw material that is then used to make new products.   No trade-offs  With more than 10 years’ worth of hard-work and innovation, TerraCycle is now operational in 21 countries which includes the UK, Brazil, France, Germany, Sweden, Japan, China, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Australia. However, reaching this milestone has not been a smooth road. “Despite being on the verge of bankruptcy only one year into starting the business, I turned down a million-dollar grand prize from the Carrot Capital Business Plan,” says Tom, as the investors were keen on reducing the company’s focus on the sustainable actions and suggested firing the staff that helped him build the enterprise. After turning down the winnings, adversity sparked innovation and TerraCycle’s breakthrough came in 2004 when The Home Depot and Walmart started selling their little-known “wormpoop” fertiliser in re-used soda bottles.   TerraCycle has always strived to “eliminate the idea of waste,” and for all these years of operation, they have been supporting this mission by offering consumers and the (CPG) viable solutions, many of which were previously unavailable, to recycle packaging waste.   To date, over 200 million people worldwide have collected nearly 7.8 billion pieces of pre- and postconsumer waste and over US$ 44 million has been donated to schools and nonprofits.   “TerraCycle’s ultimate measure of success is not just greater access to recycling, it is the universal adaptation of the “reduce, reuse, recycle” adage we were taught as children,” shares Tom.   TerraCycle acknowledges the challenge of waste not being handled properly and recycling units not being enough. Moreover, they consider recycling a “band-aid to the global waste crisis.” There is no “silver bullet” to realise the vision of “eliminating the idea of waste.” It is a process that requires generous contribution from everyone.   Reducing consumption, investing in reusable packaging technology, and when materials can no longer be reused, recycling them is the solution. TerraCycle’s vision of success synthesises these approaches in pursuit of a truly “circular” economy in which resources are reused continually rather than being disposed of after a single use.   Looping in  TerraCycle is reaching newer dimensions with its work. Tom informs, “As we move forward as a brand, we will continue to implement new programs that build towards this idea of a circular economy. The launch of Loop in-store, the first-ever circular shopping system, enables consumers to shop for their favourite products in reusable, not disposable packaging.” It is a sustainable, zero-waste version of shopping for your daily needs like food, personal care, household goods and other supplies.   In the Loop store, you can return all their durable packaging once you have finished the product, and Loop will clean, refill and reuse all of it. A number of brands like Coca Cola, Heinz, Dr. Will’s and more are partnering with Loop to make eco-conscious consumption simpler. Other than that, emerging business units include TerraCycle Home, which offers food waste collection and composting services as well as recycling services for items not accepted in local recycling programs; TerraCycle Made, that makes products out of materials the company recycled, will also create more opportunities for the consumer to lead more sustainable lives. »  

Between Thanksgiving and New Year's, Americans throw away 25 percent more trash than any other time of year - amounting to nearly 25 million tons of excess waste each year. This holiday season, TerraCycle is launching the TerraCycle Made collection, a small selection of products created from recycled and recyclable materials all sourced from various TerraCycle recycling programs. The TerraCycle Made collection includes: Wireless charger: 100 percent recycled content including materials collected through TerraCycle recycling programs. Upcycled coin pouch, travel case, tablet case, and tote: All made in the U.S. from retired USPS mailbags. Stackable organizers, compost bin, divided trash/recycling bin, and other assorted household goods: All made from recycled content including materials collected through TerraCycle recycling programs. Every purchase from the TerraCycle Made collection reduces the reliance on virgin materials extracted from the planet while creating long-lasting, essential products, to stand up to years of use in the home. By making new items from the materials collected by the TerraCycle community, this valuable resource never goes to waste. The TerraCycle Made collection has a free, built-in recycling program to make sure each purchase will never end up in the trash. The recycled-content products are made to last, but at the end of their useful life, they can be sent back and recycled again through TerraCycle.

                                                       

Add a personal touch to holiday gifts for the packaging peeps on your list this year, courtesy of your friends at Packaging Digest. Since a packaging career is often a family affair and camaraderie eclipses competition for the most part, you probably have a packaging professional on your holiday gift list. You can only get them so many funny socks and coffee mugs. And last-minute impulse buying rarely produces a sincere “Oh, thank you! I love it!” response. What to do, what to do. Here are a few ideas that might inspire you to buy one for them and one for you. 1. An industry-related book. (7 reviews!) 2. Personalized T-shirts. (Multiple sayings!) 3. Consumer goods made from recycled packages/materials. (3 options) A quick search on Amazon for books from 2021 about packaging turned up a bunch. Here are a few that caught our eye. (Feel free to shop around for copies available from other sellers.) • “Sustainable Innovations in Food Packaging” (first edition!): According to book’s description, “This book presents eco-friendly packaging strategies to reduce food and plastic waste and address the end-of-life issues of persistent materials. It particularly focuses on the production of biodegradable microbial polymers and the use of by-products and waste from the agricultural and food industries.” • “Don’t Panic! I’m A Professional Packaging Engineer - 2022 Diary”: The Amazon description says, “A funny customized 2022 diary work planner for a busy Packaging Engineer employee and team member. Give this keepsake book to a colleague, friend, or family member, instead of a throw-away greeting card to show how much they are appreciated.” • “The Art and Science of Packaging: A Mini Encyclopedia”: This Kindle book on package design promises to be different. “This book is about all the lessons we’ve learned in over a decade of experience designing a wide variety of packages. But this is also about our peers, the designers, and strategists who create thoughtful packaging solutions with style, panache, and ingenuity in engineering.” • “Secrets to Unforgettable Package Design: How To Get Started With Product Packaging Design (New Edition): The Packaging And Branding”: Oooo, who doesn’t like secrets?! This looks at packaging from a marketer’s perspective: “A product’s packaging is more than simply decoration; it’s all about the customer experience. This is precisely why a designer should make use of the product’s packaging design as a marketing technique in and of itself. Learn how to build packaging that will make customers fall in love with your business by reading about packaging secrets.” • “The Evolution of Products & Packaging: How a Spec-First Approach is Revolutionizing the Way Companies Make Things”: This paperback or Kindle book tackles current issues like product proliferation and complex supply chains. “Over the course of [author Matthew] Wright’s own evolution from packaging executive, to business owner and software startup founder, the answer to this complexity seemed simple: to keep up, the professionals would need to embrace data to make better, smarter, more sustainable products and packaging. …You’ll recognize stories of packaging and product failures, the common pitfalls organizations slip into when it comes to managing their most important data, and a glimpse into the future of how data can drive the answers to some of our most pressing supply chain challenges.” • “Tetra Pak: The Inside Story”: Peek behind the curtain at the world’s largest food and beverage packaging company. “This is a book about a ubiquitous company that everyone on this planet has bought something from them, not just once, but on average 25 times a year. …The rise and fall of Tetra Pak are told by ex-Tetra Pak executives. The author was once a Tetra Paker and from interviews of some forty ex-Tetra Pakers, this book spills the beans of what goes on in this incredible company.” • While not packaging-related, my recommendation for a thoughtful, feel-good book that rewards the reader at the end: “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles. It’s so easy to create your own message on a T-shirt! If only there were some clever sayings, like “You know you’re a packaging engineer if…” Turns out there are! Borrow one of these phrases your peers shared in this or this Packaging Digest slideshow. My favorites are “You do impromptu burst tests in the grocery store” or “You can properly pronounce organoleptics and polyethylene terephthalate.” Grab an empty package and say to yourself, “What can I make out of this?!” Or let the creative designers at upcycling company TerraCycle figure that out for you. From the company’s recent press release: “Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, Americans throw away 25% more trash than any other time of year — amounting to nearly 25 million tons of excess waste each year. This holiday season, international recycling leader TerraCycle is providing consumers the option to buy better with the launch of the TerraCycle Made collection, a small selection of useful products created from recycled and recyclable materials all sourced from various TerraCycle recycling programs.”

Recycling firm TerraCycle is giving consumers the option to “buy better” with the launch of the TerraCycle Made collection, a small selection of products created from recycled and recyclable materials all sourced from various TerraCycle recycling programmes.