Fastenal has partnered with a recycling solutions firm in an effort to recycle more of the supplies and products that it offers, company officials said this week.
TerraCycle said that the Minnesota distributor — no. 4 on ID’s latest Big 50 list — has made its “Zero Waste Box” solution available through Fastenal’s website. The Zero Waste Box, TerraCycle officials said, allows companies to easily collect specific products and, once the box is full, return them to TerraCycle for recycling. The companies said that the platform offers an easy way to divert harder-to-recycle items, such as PPE products, writing supplies and breakroom materials, from landfills.
“Many of those items — like disposable gloves and protective gear — don’t have a clear end-of-life path once they are used,” Chris Behrens, sustainability specialist at Fastenal, said in a statement. “By partnering with TerraCycle, we can now offer a practical way to collect and recycle those materials at the same time they’re ordered, making it easier for customers to manage that waste through the same purchasing process they already use.”
The companies’ partnership was announced ahead of Global Recycling Day on Wednesday.
“When recycling solutions are available through the same channels businesses use to buy their safety and operational supplies, sustainability becomes part of how work gets done rather than an add-on,” added TerraCycle founder and CEO Tom Szaky.
