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TerraCycle partners with Colgate and ShopRite for school recycling challenge contest

The contest runs until June 30.
School supplies made from oral care products

Trenton-based company TerraCycle has launched a school recycling challenge with Colgate and ShopRite. Participating schools in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and four other states can compete for prizes that include new desks, chairs, backpacks, pencil cases and pens — all made from recycled oral care waste and packaging.

Between now and June 30, school representatives can register online for the Colgate and ShopRite School Challenge. Participants are encouraged to collect and recycle used oral care waste and packaging, including empty toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes, and dental floss containers, through the Colgate Oral Care Recycling Program. With each shipment sent for recycling, participants earn “supply credits.” Schools can earn extra credits by voting online on the contest page for the registered school of their choice.

β€œIn a year of quarantining, virtual school schedules and missing family and friends, TerraCycle, ShopRite and Colgate have come together to give students, teachers, and all the communities affected by COVID-19 something to look forward to when we’re back in the classroom for the 2021-2022 school year,” said TerraCycle founder and CEO Tom Szaky. β€œSo while we wait and do our part to end the pandemic, this challenge is about giving the communities we serve a chance to start the year off right with new school supplies that are not only made from oral care waste, but are something to smile about.”

Through June 30, each .02 pound unit of used, post-consumer oral care products and packaging that is sent to TerraCycle for recycling earns participating schools one school supplies credit towards winning the grand prize set of school supplies made from recycled oral care waste that has been cleaned, processed, and remolded. The school with the most credits at the conclusion of the contest period will be named the winner and the prize package will be awarded in the fall. The first and second runner-up schools will also be awarded sets of recycled school supplies similar to the grand prize.

Individuals, families, schools, and community groups can also participate in Colgate Oral Care Recycling Program. For each piece of oral care waste and packaging sent to TerraCycle using a pre-paid shipping label, participants can earn money toward the school or charity of their choice.

Founded more than 15 years ago, TerraCycle’s mission is to eliminate waste. Now operating across 20 countries, TerraCycle partners with leading consumer product companies, retailers, and cities to recycle products and packages — ranging from dirty diapers to juice wrappers to cigarette butts — that would otherwise end up being incinerated or going in a landfill. The company also works with leading consumer product companies to integrate hard to recycle waste streams such as ocean plastic into their products and packaging. Its new division, Loop, is the first shopping system that gives consumers a way to shop for their favorite brands in durable, reusable packaging. TerraCycle has won more than 200 awards for sustainability and has donated over $44 million to schools and charities since its founding.

Avatar of Krystal Knapp

Krystal Knapp is the founding editor of Planet Princeton. Follow her on Twitter @krystalknapp. She can be reached via email at editor AT planetprinceton.com. Send all letters to the editor and press releases to that email address.