TerraCycle launched its company into Australia in 2014. Founder Tom Szaky has been building the company’s mission to create a market for waste through recycling ventures. In his terms, anything and everything should be recyclable, from product packaging, coffee pods, toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes and cigarette butts.
Back in 2014, on the expansion into the Asian Pacific region, Mr Szaky gave an interview about his goals for the company.
“There are around 4.1 trillion cigarette butts littered around the world per annum. They are exceptionally toxic, and [being made of cellulose plastic] can take around 1000 years to biodegrade. Our goal has been to bring recycling opportunities to waste streams [like cigarette butts] which have not been available.”
At that stage, the company TerraCycle was earning a turnover of more than $22 million per annum, with expectations of growth more than tripling that figure.
Fast forward to 2016, and Szaky will tell you that TerraCycle is still going strong. Just recently in February, the company celebrated saving over 1.6 million cereal bags from going to landfills with their brand partner, Malt-O-Meal Cereal. But Szaky is a realist, too.
Is Zero waste an achievable goal? Tom Szaky recently posed this question to himself on a blog as a guest writer.
“The term zero waste is a misnomer,” he says, “and the goal to achieve 100% zero waste, while noble, isn’t feasible for most consumers—but that doesn’t mean the path toward zero waste isn’t one worth walking.”
TerraCycle’s goal, however, is zero waste, as unachievable as it sounds. By creating new partnerships, Szaky expands his now multi-million-dollar company into more options to divert materials from disposal and bridge the economic gap that prevents companies from seeking recycling alternatives.
TerraCycle has something for everyone, too. From the individual to the corporate company, programs both free and paid are available to anyone who wants to participate. If you do participate, you not only help the environment but can earn rewards for your favorite charity.
With a global expansion, (head office in Toronto, Canada into the Middle East, Asia Pacific, Europe, Japan, South Korea, South America, Australia and New Zealand, TerraCycle is set to be the leader in the recycling industry.
Szaky is hopeful of its ambitions to generate a healthier environment. “Even if we as consumers, businesses, manufacturers and multinational corporations fall short of 100% zero waste (which we will), we’ll still be able to accomplish a lot along the way.”
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