Reduce your carbon footprint by recycling with TerraCycle
TerraCycle’s collection models are different than traditional recyclers’. While your curbside recycling gets picked up, most TerraCycle recycling solutions involve shipping your waste to a central location to be recycled.
We always advocate that you recycle as much as you can curbside before recycling with TerraCycle. For your hard-to-recycle items that can’t be recycled locally, we’re an easy alternative to sending your waste to landfills and incinerators. But you may wonder about the carbon footprint of shipping your trash to TerraCycle. Is shipping just as bad for the environment as throwing something in the trash?
TerraCycle recycling models are better for the planet
We don’t just think our recycling solutions are better—we know it. That’s because we have an internal Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) department that conducts LCAs to measure the environmental benefits of our recycling programs in 7 to 10 impact categories, like global warming potential and human carcinogenic toxicity. Data-driven decision-making is central to how we operate.
In a third-party reviewed LCA of flexible film plastic recycling in the US, we compared TerraCycle’s four unique models for collection and recycling to local disposal options (landfills and incinerators).
The analysis considered factors like the environmental costs of transporting waste to our check-in and sorting facilities, the production and transportation of collection boxes (for Zero Waste Boxes), and the sorting and recycling process.
The LCA calculated that across eight impact categories, TerraCycle recycling models were 45% better for the planet than landfills and incinerators.
We took into account the weight of shipments and the total distance a box travels to ensure the findings apply to a country as large as the US. Even increasing the distance a box traveled by three times still resulted in a 20 to 30% benefit over landfill and incineration options in any impact category. We also found that a 90% reduction in weight per shipment had less than a 5% impact on any category.
An LCA of our rigid plastic recycling in the US showed even larger benefits. TerraCycle solutions were found to be 73% better for the planet compared to local municipal landfilling and 67% better than waste-to-energy models
Explore the full findings of our flexible film recycling LCA here.
Our products are designed to be easier on the Earth
While you can use any box you have on hand to participate in our free recycling programs, we send a box to you when you purchase a Zero Waste Box™.
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Our shipping meets carbon-neutral standards through our shipping partners and through third-party verification.
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Our Zero Waste Boxes are made using SFI-certified paper, granted by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative by meeting sustainable procurement standards of forest products and forest management. After your filled box is sent back to us, we also recycle the plastic liner and cardboard box.
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After your filled box is sent back to us, we also recycle the plastic liner and cardboard box.
Recycling is always a better choice than the trash
No matter the method—curbside recycling or TerraCycle—recycling is always a more circular option than disposal. That’s because it reduces the need to extract virgin materials from the planet, prevents trash from being landfilled or littered, and reuses valuable material that would otherwise go to waste. Learn more about the environmental benefits of recycling.
Recycling does have a carbon footprint, but it is a significant improvement over disposing of waste in landfills or through incineration. We always recommend reducing your consumption, reusing as much as you can, and then recycling locally before turning to TerraCycle’s recycling options. But when you’ve found yourself with something hard to recycle, rest assured that shipping your trash to us for recycling is still much better for the environment than the alternatives.
Ready to recycle what you couldn’t before? Browse our free and paid recycling solutions.