Nov 16 2008
Midwest Coca-Cola Bottling Company and Coca-Cola Recycling, LLC (CCR), in partnership with Holiday Stationstores, the Recycling Association of Minnesota (RAM), and Hennepin County launched a new program aimed at increasing recycling outside the home.
Giant, Coke bottle-shaped recycling bins have been placed at Holiday stations throughout the metro area to offer consumers a convenient on-the-go recycling option. The launch includes free give-aways and other promotions at the Holiday Stationstore on Rice Street in Saint Paul. By the end of 2009, the bins will be at 150 Twin Cities Holiday locations. The Recycling Association of Minnesota (RAM) will work with PPL Industries and Adult Training and Habilitation Center to hire special needs adults who will collect and sort the material. Hennepin County has provided trucks and funding for sorting equipment to PPL Industries to support this effort.
"While most Minnesotans recycle at home, studies show that recycling rates decrease dramatically when people are away from home. The Coca-Cola -- Holiday Stationstores partnership will make recycling convenient and hopefully reverse that trend," said Ellen Telander, Executive Director, Recycling Association of Minnesota. "RAM has found that on average 50 percent of the volume of trash at gas stations consists of bottles and cans -- items that most people are recycling when in their home."
Currently, Minnesota has a recycling rate of 43 percent with a goal of increasing that rate to 50 percent by 2011. People have proven willing to recycle if given the option, so offering options for away-from-home recycling is a key component of achieving that goal. Coke introduced Minnesotans to these bins at the 2008 State Fair, where they placed more than 400 of them throughout the Fair grounds. The effort was incredibly successful and Minnesotans recycled nearly 336,000 beverage containers.
"Coca-Cola is committed to maximizing our use of renewable, reusable and recyclable resources, ultimately recycling the equivalent of 100 percent of our packaging," said John Burgess, President of Coca-Cola Recycling, LLC. "This partnership will make it convenient for consumers to recycle away from home and it will help Coca-Cola close the loop by recovering more material and using it to increase the recycled content of our packages."
"Holiday Stationstores is proud to offer customers a convenient way to recycle and make a difference for the environment," said Larry Mitchell, Holiday Companies Vice President of Merchandising.
Midwest Coca-Cola Bottling Company, based in Eagan, is an operating unit of Coca-Cola Enterprises, the world's largest marketer, distributor and producer of Coca-Cola products. The company employs approximately 1,500 people in the state of Minnesota, including 1,000 at the Eagan facility.
Coca-Cola Recycling, based in Atlanta, is dedicated to recovering and recycling packaging materials used in North America -- including polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, aluminum, cardboard and plastic film. Coca-Cola has the only facility in the nation (based in South Carolina) that recycles plastic bottle to plastic bottle. Coca-Cola Recycling is working to recover and recycle the equivalent of 100 percent of the packaging produced by the Coca-Cola system in the United States. Founded in 2007, Coca-Cola Recycling is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE), the world's largest marketer, distributor, and producer of bottle and can liquid nonalcoholic refreshment. CCE sells approximately 80 percent of The Coca-Cola Company's bottle and can volume in North America and is the sole licensed bottler for products of The Coca-Cola Company in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, and the Netherlands.
Holiday Stationstores is a recognized leader in the convenience store/gas station industry with 440 stores located throughout 12 states in the northern tier region of the United States: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington and Alaska. Holiday distinguishes itself in the marketplace through its exceptional Holiday Pantry food programs and is the sole distributor of Blue Planet gasoline, the clean air choice leader.
The Recycling Association of Minnesota (RAM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization with more than 200 members from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. RAM is the Minnesota affiliate of the National Recycling Coalition. RAM is committed to promoting resource conservation through waste prevention, reuse, recycling, composting and purchasing practices using the most cost effective and environmentally sound methods available in Minnesota.
Hennepin County Environmental Services' mission is to protect and conserve natural resources for future generations. Hennepin County businesses and residents recycle over 600,000 tons of cans, bottles and paper annually. This effort saves over 1.2 million trees, conserves energy to power 100,000 homes, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing more than 300,000 cars off the road every year.