Mattel offering new life to old toys

The Matchbox cars haven’t raced on any tracks in years, the Barbies haven’t left their Dream Homes in even longer and the Mega Blox are just collecting dust. 

This is a familiar scene in countless toy boxes around the world, so Mattel has come up with a solution- a toy takeback program designed to give new life to old toys and keep them out of landfills.

It’s called Mattel Playback, and it will allow the giant toy manufacturer to recover and reuse materials from outgrown toys in the production of future products.

This recycling program is free for participants.

“Mattel toys are made to last and be passed on from generation to generation,” Mattel President and Chief Operating Officer Richard Dickson said in a statement to USA Today.

For the materials that they are unable to reuse, the company said they will downcycle them or convert them from waste to energy. The company has set a goal to be using 100% recycled or recyclable materials by the year 2030.

Last year, Mattel introduced two Fisher-Price products, Baby’s Rock-a-Stax and another set called Baby’s First Blox, using entirely recycled materials in the packaging and actual toys. They also released three Mega Bloks sets made from bio-based plastics.

The first die-cast vehicle, made from 99% recycled materials, is the Matchbox Tesla Roadster due to be released in early 2022.

People wishing to participate in this innovative program can go to https://www.mattel.com/en-us/playroom/playback to print a free shipping label. Those without computers and printers can request a shipping label by calling 800-524-8697.