TerraCycle has turned Taco Bell sauce packets into picnic tables at Trenton Thunder Ballpark and local parks in Mercer County, demonstrating a successful recycling pilot while giving families a place to rest.
The benches were unveiled earlier this week at Trenton Thunder Ballpark, Tantum Park in Robbinsville and Bromley Park in Hamilton Township.
About six months ago, TerraCycle launched its first quick service restaurant initiative with Taco Bell to divert its used hot sauce packets away from landfills. According to a June 10 announcement from the Trenton-based company, the program collected enough sauce packets to stretch across 13 NFL football fields.
“Plastic waste has long been a problem, and the visionaries at TerraCycle have ingeniously reused and recycled products in the most imaginative ways,” said Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes. “Countless sauce and condiment packets that could have ended up in landfills have instead been transformed into picnic tables where Trenton Thunder fans will sit and enjoy a baseball game.”
“I’m hopeful that among the children who sit at the picnic tables will be the visionaries of the next generation who will help our planet become cleaner and greener,” said Mercer County Park Commission Executive Director Aaron Watson. “The presence of these tables is an illustration of our commitment to doing the work to preserve our environment.”
Consumers across the U.S. can now mail in their used Taco Bell hot sauce packets via the Taco Bell Sauce Packet Free Recycling Program.
