Reverse Vending Machines On Campuses Encourage College Students To Recycle

Shelton-based Greenbean, a company that makes reverse recycling machines (RVM) has expanded its bottle and can recycling incentive program for U.S. colleges and universities, according to Vendingtimes.com.

Greenbean has RVMs at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Harvard University, Brandeis University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University, Merrimack College, Bentley University and University of Southern Indiana.

Students who use the machine can insert a bottle or can, enter their email and earn rewards that can be traded in for prizes, reusable grocery bags and gift cards. They can also choose to donate their points to local charities.

Greenbean’s machines are made by Tomra, a company that makes vending machines.

“Greenbean is an innovative loyalty program that rewards students for recycling. It offers personalized incentives to drive engagement, and can even facilitate on-campus contests to generate excitement about recycling and other sustainability topics,” Tomra director of strategy and commercial software Ryan Drake-Lee said in a statement.

“We welcome discussions with retailers, consumer product companies or other organizations that would like to sponsor a Greenbean machine by providing gift cards or product giveaways in exchange for brand visibility and a dialogue with college students.”

Click here to read more on Vendingtimes.com.