Introducing eco-cycology, a top consumer trend for 2012 Eco-cycology involves recycling old products and waste products innovatively, by doing something constructive with them; taking them beyond the blue box and making them useful components of new products. Continuing its sustainability efforts, London Drugs has made significant strides over the past year to pioneer this type of behavior.
Through a pilot project with Cascades Recovery and Cascades Specialty Products Group, manufacturers of the Cascades line of recycled paper products, bathroom tissue and paper towels sold at London Drugs, cardboard returned through London Drugs’ Bring Back the Pack package recycling program can be used to create new paper products sold in stores.
“When a customer brings back cardboard packaging to London Drugs for recycling, they could eventually be buying paper products from us that contain some of that same material,” said Maury McCausland, Administrator of Retail Operations for London Drugs. “That’s pretty exciting.”
London Drugs is Canada’s only major retailer to offer packaging return and recycling, including Styrofoam, which is not accepted as part of many city recycling programs. Styrofoam returned to London Drugs is sent to recycling partner Genesis Recycling where it is compressed into large bricks, which are sold as polystyrene and reused for the manufacture of new products. So far, London Drugs has recycled over 118,000lbs of Styrofoam that would have otherwise ended up in landfills.
More Ways to Take Recycling Beyond the Blue Box With London Drugs
London Drugs’ “What’s the Green Deal” in-store product signs point out over 200 products that offer environmentally-preferable benefits to customers, such as organic content, fair-trade certification, recycled content and local manufacturing.
Customers can also bring back virtually anything they buy at London Drugs for responsible recycling including;
- Electrical and Electronic goods (TVs, VCRs, computers, monitors, printers etc)
- Small Appliances (purchased at London Drugs)
- Cell phones, rechargeable batteries and alkaline batteries
- Compact Fluorescent Bulbs (CFL’s) and fluorescent light tubes up to 4ft
- Disposable cameras
- Ink jet and laser cartridges
- Plastic bags
- Pop bottles and cans (BC only)
- Insurance plastic folders
