Sarasota-based online retailer Ornata Jewelry is working with innovative recycling company TerraCycle to reduce harmful plastic waste. By participating in TerraCycle's Zero Waste Box program, the jewelry company recycles the plastic packaging raw materials come shipped in. Disposables, such as plastic bags, that would otherwise be sent to a landfill are now placed in a receptacle box that once full can be shipped back to TerraCycle for repurposing.

The Zero Waste Box program is remarkably straight-forward. First, businesses choose which box package and size works best for their waste disposal needs. Dozens of box options are available, including those for a variety of plastic products, worn down shoes, dead batteries, used coffee pods and even cigarette butts. After receiving the box, users fill it to the brim with appropriate debris before mailing it back to TerraCycle. (Return shipping is included in the initial box price.) Now, instead of spending a lifetime in a landfill or requiring incineration these byproducts will be up-cycled and given a second life as a park bench, bike rack or shipping pallet.

This recent partnership is just one in a long line of steps Ornata Jewelry has taken to reduce the organization's environmental impact. Since conception, company leadership has made great efforts to monitor the business's carbon footprint and minimize waste. Ornata's reduce, reuse and recycle efforts also include using eco-friendly paper in product packaging, shipping containers that meet Sustainable Forestry Initiative standards, sourcing supplies from ecologically-minded manufacturers and, whenever possible, recycling sterling silver or metal scraps.

The leaders at Ornata hope that their efforts will inspire other small businesses to take action over their own environmental impact. The company issued a statement that read, “We believe in our world and understand that its future depends on our actions, both the big and the small. Consciously logging what we use and its effects on the earth heighten our awareness and naturally leads to positive changes in our behavior.” Through teaming with TerraCycle, Ornata is one step closer to achieving its dream of creating a waste-free world and a product customers can feel good about.

To learn more on how TerraCycle could benefit your company and other initiatives, visit its website.