There are more than three kinds of recycling bins
Recycling is very, very easy. We just need to sort plastic packaging from paper, put it in the respective bins, and repeat for glass. But what about the rest?What can we do with used light bulbs, small electronic appliances, or batteries? What happens to used cooking oils? You needn’t worry about it: the second generation of Pingo Doce recycling bins is here.
The network of Pingo Doce Recycling Bins – called “Ecopontos” (something like Ecopoints) in Portuguese – covered 425 stores by the end of 2020, reaching around 97% of the brand’s network in Portugal. In these stores you can find recycling bins for not just the usual, but many other kinds of residues.
Recycling for over ten years
Pingo Doce stores all over the country have been, since 2009, equipped with Ecopontos, or recycling bins for customer use. Providing this environmental service to Pingo Doce customers contributes not only to reducing the amount of residues in landfills, but also to creating new solutions that promote a circular economy.
It all started with the Oleão; a recycling bin specifically destined to take in used cooking oil. In 2011, it was time for the Pilhão to shine: a recycling bin for used batteries. Recycling bins for small electronics and electronic appliances came next, as well bins for printer cartridges and for light bulbs and lamps. The most recent addition to the Pingo Doce recycling bin family is the Capsulão, the bin where you can safely deposit your used coffee pods and capsules since 2013.
The oil goes in the Oleão
To recycle your used cooking oil, start by storing it in robust plastic bottles that you can open and close easily. When the bottle is full, put it in the appropriate recycling bin, the Oleão, at your favourite Pingo Doce store. Since the Oleão came into existence, more than 1 million litres of used cooking oils have been collected at the Pingo Doce recycling bins.
Coffee pods and capsules go in the Capsulão
More than 300 Pingo Doce stores have now a Capsulão where you can dispose of your used coffee capsules and pods. These Pingo Doce recycling bins will collect coffee pods of any material and brand.
And what happens to the coffee grounds left inside the coffee pods? Well, the used coffee grounds recovered in the Capsulão bins have an exciting purpose, too. In eight years, around 720 tonnes of coffee grounds were collected in the Pingo Doce bins. These are sent to composting facilities where they will be turned into eco-friendly fertiliser.
Pingo Doce recycling bins: everything adds up
In 2020 alone, approximately 101 tonnes of small electronic appliances (including light bulbs), 5 tonnes of batteries, 102 tonnes of used cooking oil and 238 tonnes of coffee pods were disposed in the Pingo Doce recycling bins.
