World's Largest Retailer Recycling Cartridges
Eastman Kodak Company and Wal-Mart Stores announced the launch of a national program to recycle used materials from
in-store picture kiosks. The program is underway at about 4,100 Wal-Mart
stores and Sam’s Clubs in the U.S. that operate KODAK Picture Kiosks, and is
expected to annually recycle two million pounds of thermal printer ribbon,
spools and cartridges. That amount is equivalent to the weight of approximately
six, 250-passenger commercial airliners.
This initiative builds on ongoing sustainability efforts of both companies,
as outlined in Wal-Mart’s company-wide zero waste goal and Kodak’s Responsible
Growth principles.
“We are thrilled to be working with our longtime partner, Wal-Mart, on this
important sustainability initiative,” said Nicki Zongrone, General Manager
Retail Systems Solutions and Vice President of Eastman Kodak Company. “Kodak
has a long record of responsible behavior related to environmental issues, and
this initiative is a world’s first in the photo kiosk business. Together,
Wal-Mart and Kodak are helping to make the planet a better place for our
children.”
“Our partnership with Kodak to recycle materials from the photo kiosks in
our stores is another step towards achieving our zero waste goal,” said Lori
Kumar, divisional merchandise manager for Wal-Mart. “This initiative
complements a number of other recycling programs in our photo department,
including the recycling of silver, one-time use camera bodies and film
canisters.”
The award-winning KODAK Picture Kiosk is a walk-up, in-store photo station
where consumers can quickly and easily make photo prints, enlargements,
greeting cards, calendars, invitations and more starting with prints, CDs or
digital camera cards. Included in the Wal-Mart recycling program will be all three components used in the kiosk: printer ribbon, plastic spools and cartridges. These components are primarily made of polyethylene terphthalate
(PETE) and polystyrene, which are plastics that are widely recycled today.
These materials will be collected in each store and sent regularly to one of
several Wal-Mart Return Centers. From there, Wal-Mart recyclers, with Kodak’s
assistance, will separate the materials and process them for re-use. In a
related effort to further reduce waste and impact to the environment, Kodak has
introduced a change in the way these thermal materials are packaged by removing
the bubble wrap around the donor spool which decreases the overall package size
and weight.
Kodak, which was recently named a Wal-Mart “Supplier of the Year, Photo
Department/ Electronics,” has been a pioneer in the recycling arena for nearly
two decades. Since 1990, Kodak has recycled well over one billion one-time use
cameras in conjunction with numerous partners, including Wal-Mart. Today,
Kodak’s Responsible Growth goals provide for product stewardship across the
company’s commercial and consumer product portfolios.
This article originally appeared in the February 2008 issue of Recharger.