WELLINGTON, New Zealand — AdultToyMegastore (ATMS) has announced the launch of a sex toy recycling program to enables New Zealanders to recycle their electronic, metal and glass adult toys.
“If it buzzes, vibrates, wiggles, pulsates, or is made from glass or metal, it can be sent back to [our] warehouse in Grenada North, Wellington, to give its recyclable parts new life,” said a rep.
The sender will be rewarded with a NZ $10 voucher to go towards a replacement if the product was originally purchased from ATMS.
Natasha Bull, ATMS head of customer satisfaction, and manager of the recycling program, said the company “values sustainability and always makes an effort to implement ethical practices in whatever we're doing.”
“We understand that adult toys aren’t easy to dispose of ethically, so we’ve been working on this program for quite some time and we’re excited to be able to provide this option to our customers,” she added.
The recycling program includes glass, metal and e-waste. All products must be sterilized before being returned. ATMS has partnered with a recycling business in Wellington to receive, strip and store the materials until there is enough volume to be recycled. The company said that “health and safety precautions will be taken to ensure safe handling of the products.”
Batteries and circuit boards will be collected and shipped to South Korea where the reusable materials will be stripped for recycling, and hazardous substances “will be ethically and safely disposed of,” the rep added.
Depending on the grade of the circuit board, it may be sent to UMICORE, a global materials technology and recycling group in Belgium that aims to reduce harmful emissions and works with hundreds of organizations around the world to provide sustainable solutions.
Any metal sex toys, or metal found in the products such as ball bearings and motors, will be collected and shipped in bulk to Germany where the metals will be extracted, sorted, pressed into bales and smelted down and reformed for the next step in their life cycle.
“Metal recycling in Germany helps to save energy and CO2 by using the recycled raw materials in production,” the rep continued. “The parts of the products that do not currently have a recycling option available, such as PVC and silicone, will be disposed at a Class 1 landfill, as per the recommendation of the Ministry of Environment. ATMS is working to find solutions for these materials and welcomes contact from businesses that can help.”
Bull added that “launching the recycling program has been a challenging process of understanding what ethical disposal options are available for the range of materials found in adult toys and finding the right people who are happy to work with us to achieve our goal. The processes needed for breaking down materials like silicone and PVC are not currently available locally, but we intend to find solutions and are actively looking to partner with local businesses and find ways that our recycled materials can be put to good use here in New Zealand, so if you can help, please get in touch.”
In 2020, ATMS partnered with R3pack to switch all packaging to 100% recyclable and compostable materials.
For more information about the ATMS sex toy recycling program, click here.
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