TerraCycle
for SAY!
updated April 21, 2025
TerraCycle points
redeemed in April 2021 for June 2021 payment to Somerville Arts for Youth! |
$25 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in Oct. 2021 for Jan. 2022 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$50 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in April 2022 for June 2022 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$45 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in Oct. 2022 for Jan. 2023 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$80 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in April 2023 for June 2023 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$130 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in Oct. 2023 for Jan. 2024 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$140 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in April 2024 for June 2024 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$125 |
TerraCycle
points redeemed in Oct. 2024 for Jan. 2025 payment to Somerville Arts for
Youth! |
$105 |
TOTAL |
$700 |
You are welcome to leave
many items, most of which are not allowed in Somerville's curbside recycling,
on my Davis Square porch for me to ship to TerraCycle for recycling and, in
doing so, get a little money for Somerville
Arts for Youth, Inc. Please remember the following:
1.
Always check this page first, as TerraCycle occasionally discontinues or
changes programs!
2.
No
wish-cycling! Please only leave things on my porch if they
are listed below, not just because they can’t go into curbside recycling and/or
are similar to things I collect.
3.
Reduce
and reuse as much as possible, rather than recycling.
4.
If
you are leaving items that are only acceptable when they are from certain
brands (eg pumps), please leave a note telling me what brand they are, message
me that information, or just leave the entire empty product (eg bottle with
pump) and I’ll put the part that can go in curbside recycling (eg plastic
bottle without the pump) out with my house’s recycling.
5.
You
are welcome to leave items highlighted in yellow on my porch, but we do not get any points
for them.
6.
Items
on this page are now categorized: Beauty & Personal Care,
Medication, Household, Food & Beverage, Pets, Clothing, Tools, Toys,
and Miscellaneous. Plus, there are Other
Recycling Resources towards the bottom of the page.
·
all brands of toothpaste tubes & caps (we still get points for Arm & Hammer brand)
·
all brands of floss containers
·
all brands of toothbrushes
·
all brands of toothbrush outer packaging
·
all brands of
hair tools and appliances (eg broken hair dryers and curling irons)
·
ACT “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as the safety film that is on
the cap of their mouthwash
·
amika hair care packaging
·
ARM & HAMMER
toothpaste packaging
·
Aussie packaging, including Aussie shampoo and conditioner bottles,
flexible plastic packaging such as color packets, flexible plastic tubes, and
complex closures [Most Aussie containers can go in curbside recycling, but the
pumps cannot. Feel free to leave all Aussie packaging on my porch so I know
what the pumps came from, and I will then put the bottles out with my curbside
recycling and send the pumps to Teracycle.]
·
Burt’s Bees
personal care, beauty care, and lip care packaging
·
Depend
plastic packaging
·
dermalogica
skin care packaging
·
eos (not EO Essentials)
lip, lotion, and shave packaging
·
Garnier skincare and haircare
product containers
·
Gold Bond aerosol spray cans and product packaging including tubes, dark
plastic bottles, tubs, sticks, pumps and caps
·
Good Chemistry
perfume packaging
·
Goodnites
plastic packaging
·
Huggies plastic packaging
·
innisfree skincare
packaging
·
Murad bottles, pumps, jars,
lids, tubes, and caps
·
Pantene non-aerosol packaging including caps, lids and tubes [Most
Pantene bottles can go in curbside recycling, but feel free to leave all
Pantene packaging on my porch so I know what the caps and lids came from. I
will then put the bottles out with my curbside recycling and send the caps and
lids to Teracycle.]
·
Poise
plastic packaging
·
Pull-Ups plastic packaging
·
Schwarzkopf empty aerosol containers, hair care and hair color jars, lids,
bottles, closures, tubes, pumps, and caps made from plastics and flexible or
rigid aluminum
·
Selsun Blue
packaging including tubes, dark plastic bottles, tubs, sticks, pumps and caps
·
ShiKai empty packaging
·
Tom’s of Maine product packaging
that is not accepted in curbside recycling (eg deodorant containers)
·
U by Kotex plastic packaging
·
WELEDA personal care packaging
·
DISCONTINUED, DO NOT LEAVE
ON MY PORCH: all brands of deodorant containers unless
listed above (consider plastic-free deodorant containers), all brands of haircare and skincare packaging unless
listed above (some of this can be recycled through Pact at many stores), Diva, Kate Somerville, Paula’s Choice Skincare, Supergoop!
· Allegra “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as bottles that are smaller than a credit card so shouldn’t go in curbside recycling, blister packs
· Arthritis Hot “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as tubes and caps
· Aspercreme “hard-to-recycle” packaging such aerosol cans, tubes, and caps
·
Capzasin “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as
roll-ons and caps
· Cortizone-10 product packaging including tubes, dark plastic bottles, tubs, sticks, pumps and caps
· Dulcolax “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as bottles that are smaller than a credit card so shouldn’t go in curbside recycling, blister packs, flexible pouches
· Gold Bond aerosol spray cans and product packaging including tubes, dark plastic bottles, tubs, sticks, pumps, and caps
· Icy Hot “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as aerosol spray cans, tubes, and caps
· Nasacort “hard-to-recycle” packaging
·
Sportscreme “hard-to-recycle”
packaging such as tubes and caps
·
Unisom “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as blister packs
·
Xyzal “hard-to-recycle”
packaging such as bottles that are smaller than a credit card so shouldn’t go
in curbside recycling, blister packs
·
Zantac “hard-to-recycle” packaging such as
bottles that are smaller than a credit card so shouldn’t go in curbside
recycling, blister packs
·
all brands of air and home care trigger heads, bottles (that can’t go in
curbside recycling) and lids, plugs, and cartridges [NO AEROSOLS]
·
ARM & HAMMER
plastic pouches
·
Brita dispensers, pitchers,
bottles, filters, and plastic filter packaging
·
Cottonelle toilet
paper and wipes plastic packaging
·
Downy pouches
·
Dreft fabric care packaging
·
Gain tubs and lids
·
Mr. Clean
Deep Cleaning Mist bottles and trigger heads
·
NBD. fabric care
packaging, eco-box packaging, bottles, and triggers
·
OxiClean
plastic pouches
·
Scott
toilet paper and wipes plastic packaging
·
SodaStream
sparkling water makers (not the CO2 cylinders or bottles)
·
Swiffer used wet or dry refills (please make sure they are dry before
you drop them off at my house)
·
Tide tubs and lids, To Go Pens, and pouches
·
Viva paper towels plastic packaging
·
Ziploc Endurables silicone pouches and containers
·
all brands of squeezable snack plastic pouches and caps
·
all brands of empty sauce (eg ketchup and soy sauce from take-out)
packets, cups (dipping sauces), and souffle cups that hold less than 2 ounces
·
all brands of coffee creamer pods
·
Babybel product packaging, such as cellophane, tag, net, metal clasps,
wax, plastic wrappers and pouches
·
Bimbo Bakeries USA bags including Arnold, Ball Park, Brownberry, Lender’s Bagels,
Oroweat, Sara Lee, Stroehmann, Thomas’, and more brands which are listed at https://www.bimbobakeriesusa.com/
·
BuzzBallz and BuzzTallz
rigid plastic and aluminum containers, flexible plastic overwraps
·
Cambio Roasters coffee pods
·
Café La Llavae
Espresso coffee bags and pods
·
Cerebelly flexible plastic pouches [currently usually included in
collection that accepts all brands of squeezable snack plastic pouches and
caps]
·
Don Francisco
coffee bags and pods
·
Dunkin’ flexible ground and
whole bean coffee bags
·
Entenmann's
Little Bites pouches and Minis film packaging
·
Evolve wrappers
·
Gatorade/G Endurance
wrappers and pods
·
Gerber baby food packaging
·
Jose’s Gourmet
coffee packaging
·
Lundberg Family Farms
flexible packaging
·
Marinela
flexible plastic packaging
·
Mountain House
flexible plastic pouches
·
Muscle Milk
wrappers
·
North Coast
apple sauce pouches [currently usually included in collection that accepts all
brands of squeezable snack plastic pouches and caps]
·
NOW plastic packaging
·
Peterson Farms Treats
applesauce pouches [currently usually included in collection that accepts all
brands of squeezable snack plastic pouches and caps]
·
Propel wrappers
·
Takis Snacks, Rolled Tortilla Chips, STIX™, POP!, Waves, Kettlez, and
Crisps flexible plastic bags and canisters
·
DISCONTINUED, DO NOT LEAVE
ON MY PORCH: Barilla, good2grow, Late July Snacks, Off The Eaten
Path
·
Benebone nylon dog chew toys
·
ONLY ACCEPTED DURING
SPECIAL PROMOTIONS, DO NOT LEAVE ON MY PORCH: Halo, Open Farm, Royal Canin, and Wellness (please
recycle at Pet
Supplies Plus stores)
·
all brands of socks
(not tights or pantyhose) that are clean but won’t be worn because have holes,
are missing mate, etc.
·
LILYSILK
non-donatable textiles
·
DISCONTINUED, DO NOT
LEAVE ON MY PORCH: baby
& kid clothing (please use Somerville’s
textile recycling program except for socks)
TOOLS
·
BLACK
+ DECKER home appliances and tools
·
Bostitch tools
·
CRAFTSMAN
tools
·
DEWALT
tools
·
IRWIN
tools
·
LENOX
tools
·
MAC
Tools
·
PORTER-CABLE
tools
·
STANLEY tools
·
Funsicle inflatable pools and floats
·
LeapFrog electronic learning devices and electronic
toys (batteries removed, please)
·
Spin
Master toys, games, and
packaging (except Kinetic Sand)
·
VTech electronic learning devices and electronic toys
·
DISCONTINUED, DO NOT LEAVE
ON MY PORCH: L.O.L.
Surprise!
·
all brands of phone cases
·
PopSockets
products and packaging
·
Gerber baby clothing hangers
·
Chesapeake Bay Candle
containers and lids (candle wax should be removed), room spray 1.5 ounces and
under
·
WoodWick glass containers (candle wax should be removed)
·
Yankee Candle glass containers (candle wax should be removed), auto air
fresheners and refills, Sidekicks, room spray 1.5 ounces and under, and
ScentPlug refills
·
DISCONTINUED, DO NOT LEAVE
ON MY PORCH: all brands of rigid black plastic takeout containers (try
to support restaurants that offer reusable takeout containers such as those
which participate in the Recirclable
program); all brands of empty/dried out pens, markers,
mechanical pencils, glue sticks, watercolor sets, and packaging from writing
instruments (some of this can be recycled at Staples stores); cough and
sore throat drop packaging; cookware, bakeware, and cutlery
·
The
Reyclopedia and the FAQ at https://recyclesmartma.org/ are
great resources for information on curbside recycling. What is accepted does
change! For example, milk cartons used to be accepted but no longer are, and
pizza cartons are now accepted but didn’t used to be.
·
Many “beauty” products
can be recycled through Pact (boxes
at many retailers) or at
Nordstrom
stores
·
Ink cartridges,
batteries, many tech products, and some types of writing instruments can be
dropped off for recycling through TerraCycle at some Staples stores.
·
All brands of pet food
and treat bags can be dropped off for recycling through TerraCycle at Pet Supplies
Plus stores
·
I have never been
registered for a program that accepts disposable razors, but one or more people
have been leaving them on my porch. This
link can help you find drop-off locations for them.
Random TerraCycle Perks
·
In December 2022, I won TerraCycle’s
“Gerber Drop-Off Join & Win” raffle. The Gerber food was given to the Somerville Homeless Coalition’s
food pantry.
·
In December 2024, I won TerraCycle’s
“Takis Back-To-School Recycling Challenge” raffle. The merchandise was given to
the Somerville Homeless
Coalition’s engagement center.