HP Plans to Boost Efficiency With Recycling Program Expansion

Authorized retail recycling is now available for HP ink and toner cartridges through the company’s Planet Partners program.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP), Palo Alto, Calif., has announced the expansion of the HP Planet Partners print cartridge return and recycling program, along with steps to reduce shipping materials and increase transportation efficiency, according to a company press release.

HP Planet Partners, part of the HP Eco Solutions program, is designed to offer customers free and convenient print cartridge return options, and now includes HP authorized retail recycling locations for HP ink cartridge and LaserJet toner cartridge collection, in addition to other recycling options.

Staples Inc., Framingham, Mass., one of the world’s largest office products company, is the first to pilot the HP retail recycling program. HP customers can return their used HP ink cartridges and LaserJet toner cartridges to more than 1,500 Staples locations throughout the United States. HP plans to name additional authorized retail recycling partners in early 2009.

Since many customers already bring their used print cartridges to retail stores when purchasing replacement cartridges, in-store recycling options at locations like Staples provide an added customer convenience, according to the company.

Because all HP ink cartridges and LaserJet toner cartridges returned to HP authorized retail locations are recycled through HP’s state-of-the-art processes, customers can be confident their print cartridges are recycled responsibly and diverted from landfills, the company says.

“We introduced HP Planet Partners long before ‘going green’ was a trend, and over time HP has made print cartridge recycling easier and more widely available,” says John Solomon, vice president and general manager, North American Consumer Business, Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “As environmental awareness and customer participation have increased, we’re proud to offer customers authorized retail recycling locations as a natural evolution of the program.”

To reduce the amount of shipping material required for recycling returns, HP will no longer include return envelopes in HP ink cartridge packaging. However, HP will continue to accept ink cartridges returned in envelopes that customers have saved. The company offers customers several free, postage-paid return options at www.hp.com/recycle, including return envelopes, bulk collection boxes and printable labels. HP will continue to offer return labels in HP LaserJet toner cartridge packaging as well as its online and in-store recycling options.

HP estimates that if all ink cartridges returned via in-box envelopes in 2008 were instead returned in bulk from authorized retail recycling locations, the amount of shipping materials used would have been reduced by more than 600,000 pounds.

Additionally, transport efficiency may be improved as cartridges shipped in bulk can be packed more tightly than those shipped individually, the company says.

“Staples makes it easy for customers to safely and responsibly recycle a wide variety of their used technology, whether its ink and toner cartridges, or cell phones and larger technology items like laptops and computers,” says Scott Rankin, vice president, Technology Merchandising, Staples Inc.

Staples currently offers customers $3 back in Staples Rewards for each HP ink cartridge or LaserJet toner cartridge recycled in stores.

More information is available at www.hp.com/go/retailrecycling or www.staples.com/RecycleHP.