When you choose reuse, you’re eliminating the recycling questions
The first time I spoke with Tom Szaky, founder of TerraCycle and Loop, he said something that I had been thinking to myself for years. When you buy something, you own it and that includes the packaging. But who wants to own an empty coffee cup or plastic detergent bottle? You want what’s in the packaging and after you’re done with it, you’re stuck with figuring out what to do with it. But there are now more options to shop reuse and with Loop, that happens on a bigger scale. The idea behind Loop is eliminating the idea of waste. The company began a partnership a few years back with brands and manufacturers to make available refillable versions of conventional single-use products. What started as online shopping entered into Portland area Fred Meyer and Walgreen stores recently. It’s as easy as adding the app to your phone, buying the product (price includes a deposit) and then returning it to a store and scanning the product to get your refund.
