When outdoor gear retailer REI decided to pull all of the water bottles that contain the chemical bisphenol A (BPA) off its shelves, it ended up with 100,000 bottles that it would not sell to consumers.
REI had pulled the items due to heightened concern over BPA's effect on human bodies and in what cases BPA can leach out of plastic and into liquids or food it's in contact with.
Not wanting to simply dump the 28,000 pounds of water bottles in the trash, REI sought out Aladdin, a maker of food and drink products.
The 100,000 bottles came from a variety of manufacturers and contained various materials other than the hard polycarbonate, such as different plastic tops or fabric lanyards. Aladdin separated all the materials for recycling, and ground up all the hard polycarbonate, reforming it into the outer liner for travel mugs.
Aladdin then added a BPA-free plastic liner to the inside of the mug, making the Aladdin eCycle Recycled and Repurposed Travel Mug (right), exclusive to REI. The mug contains 85 percent recycled plastic and 30 percent post consumer recycled content overall.
Polycarbonate bottles - CC license by drummerguy8706