May 3, 2010 13:29 by
Jenn 
Is my trash your treasure? If you own any TerraCycle products, there's a chance it was once my own trash. Because each month, over 200,000 pounds of trash end up in this eco-friendly company's warehouse to be reused in new products.
If you stepped foot into any Walmart during the Earth Day season, you may have seen their Capri-Sun pouch backpacks displayed next to bulk packs of Capri-Sun and perhaps you even purchased their Skittle package kite that was positioned next to the sweet rainbow tasting Skittles candies.
What TerraCycle does is revolutionary to the green industry. Instead of using organic materials, they use recycled materials. The image above illustrates how an ordinary Pepsi bottle and recycled spray cap are turned into the perfect plant food sprayer. Other well known brand names like Capri-Sun and Skittles are also being collected and redesigned into usable items like TerraCycle plant food, coolers and kites, to name a few.
This concept of re-using items to create new items, was displayed most artistically by some of my favroite artists, Sue Webster and Tim Noble. Their art is compiled of trash fresh off the streets of London. By projecting light through the meticulously placed trash, this duo has most certainly lived up to Terracycle's motto, "Outsmart Waste."
To collect the recyclable goods for new TerraCycle products, major companies like Kraft Foods Inc., Kellogg Co., and and Nabisco have organized trash drives in schools. You can start your own TerraCycle brigade in your school or community too.
Other companies are sending TerraCycle their trash in hopes to offset their carbon footprints. Cumbersome cardboard boxes and wasteful plastic wrap used to package goods are usually tossed into dumps, but by donating these materials to TerraCycle, businesses are able to contribute to sustainable living.
Unfortunately, as this garbage is sent to TerraCycle warehouses there is not enough demand to produce more materials. Their eco-friendly initiatives are making a dent, but after a major Earth Day promotion, they're still seeing losses.
Retailers are being urged to carry TerraCycle items and with hope that they're able to survive in our economy, larger scale eco-friendly products can be created and even greater environmentally friendly initiatives can be taken.
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