Skip to content

Thank you for five fantastic years of candy wrapper recycling and community education!

An important update for Trash or Treasure 2024

To our amazing TOT community –

After five incredibly successful and inspiring years of Trash or Treasure (TOT), the Rubicon team will be pausing our signature candy wrapper recycling box program for the remainder of 2024.

We are so grateful to our countless, passionate “TOT alums” who have ordered boxes for their communities, collected thousands of wrappers, and shared valuable feedback over the years to help us grow and evolve this program. We know this pause for Halloween 2024 will be a disappointment to many of you, especially those who have participated in TOT since its humble beginnings.

We feel TOT is now at a point in its maturity where we need to step back and evaluate the program with fresh eyes, ensuring that we can continue our mission to divert waste from landfills and inspire communities to recycle year-round.

Seeing TOT expand its reach from a handful schools to organizations in every state around the country, and from just Halloween to also Valentine’s Day, has been a dream to witness. We are so grateful to our TOT participants for helping us in turning these “sweet” holidays into more sustainable celebrations!

We would also like to thank g2 revolution, our official recycling partner, and the National Wildlife Federation, our official education partner, for supporting TOT over many years. Their teams share Rubicon’s vision for a more sustainable world, and we are so thankful for their collaboration on this program. We encourage the TOT community to visit their respective websites to learn more about what each of us can do to safeguard the environment through recycling and other sustainable actions.

We look forward to sharing more updates on the evolution of TOT with you soon. In the meantime, we hope you will explore and utilize the educational materials on this site, created in collaboration with the National Wildlife Federation, to inspire your students, customers, and community members to drive forward a circular economy future that will benefit all. Even without the candy wrapper recycling box, Halloween is a GREAT occasion to discuss waste and recycling opportunities with others.

The actions you take—and the actions you inspire in others—have an impact that is vast and meaningful. THANK YOU.

With admiration and gratitude,
The Rubicon TOT Team

The Story of Trash or Treasure

What started with a small group of teachers in our first “Trick or Trash” Halloween program has grown into a nationwide movement with Trash or Treasure! Thanks to the enthusiasm and commitment of our TOT community, we relaunched our seasonal recycling program with a new name and an expanded mission in 2023. Today, the beloved Trash or Treasure program helps schools, community organizations, and small businesses across the country reduce waste all year long.

Is it trash or is it treasure? Our education program, created in collaboration with the National Wildlife Federation, encourages us all to rethink what we consider trash and recognize its inherent value as part of the circular economy. Our signature TOT mail-back candy wrapper recycling box brings that vision to life.

Our Mission to End Waste

Americans spent a record $36.9 billion on candy in 2021—more than 600 million pounds of that candy is purchased just for Halloween. We all love celebrating with something sweet! However, the vast majority of candy wrappers end up in landfills due to an inability by most curbside recycling programs to recycle them. That’s where Rubicon and Trash or Treasure come in.

By participating in Trash or Treasure, you don’t have to trash those candy wrappers and doom them to an eternity in a landfill—or worse, in our oceans. Using one of our custom candy wrapper recycling boxes, you can help keep our planet clean and contribute to the circular economy.

See how it works

“Students loved sharing the information with their peers, seeing others participate in their project, and being able to help the earth.”

Teacher

“The box was a talking point for us at various candy giving functions in our community. The box was a fun and unique way to bring recycling education to a moment in time.”

Community Organization

“It is so easy to participate. Low cost and low barrier to entry is critical to drive participation in conservation related activities.”

Small Business Owner

“Many of my students really enjoy Halloween, but they do not realize the ecological impact of all those candy wrappers. It was a great visual to start the conversation.”

Teacher

#TrashOrTreasure

Post your box photos using our official hashtag to spread the word and show off your contribution to a waste-free world!

Two people at Moorpark College standing together and holding a Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box
Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box set up by the Absegami Student Council
Students from the Absegami Student Council posing with their Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box
Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box on the counter of the Hayner Public Library District
Park District of Franklin Park students posing with their Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box
Person standing in Tare Market holding a Trash or Treasure Valentine's Day box
Trash or Treasure box at Parker and Scott General Store in Austin, TX
Students posing with their Trash or Treasure box at Saint Dominic School in New Orleans, LA
Trash or Treasure box at Wild Birds Ltd in Tampa, FL
People posing with the Trash or Treasure box at MB EcoClub in San Diego, CA
Students posing with their Trash or Treasure box at Cassidy Elementary School in Lexington, KY
Trash or Treasure box in Yesteryear Village, FL
Katie Wolk Brown posing with their Trash or Treasure box
Trash or Treasure box at Wild Birds Ltd in Florida
Trash or Treasure box at Rewash Refillery
Girl Scout Troop 3123 posing with their Trash or Treasure box at St Mary School in California
Trash or Treasure box at Trixie Hatfield HRE School
Students working with Halloween candy at Annandale Terrace Elementary in Annandale, VA
Trash or Treasure box outside of Reboot Eco
Students working with Halloween candy at Annandale Terrace Elementary in Annandale, VA
James Memorial Public Library's custom flyer for Trash or Treasure 2023
Trash or Treasure box at Hayner Public Library in Alton, IL
Trash or Treasure box at Franklin Co Solid Waste
Trash or Treasure box at Halo Soap
Trash or Treasure box at Good Buy Supply
Trash or Treasure box at Burgess Wildlife Center

Partnership with National Wildlife Federation

Known for their award-winning Ranger Rick magazines, the National Wildlife Federation has been inspiring young people to love and protect our nation’s diverse wildlife and ecosystems for generations.

America’s largest and most trusted conservation organization works to unite Americans in giving wildlife a voice and advocating for the conservation values that are woven into the fabric of our nation’s collective heritage. We are honored to call the National Wildlife Federation the official education partner of Trash or Treasure™.

Our partners

We are incredibly grateful to those companies and organizations that are helping us bring Trash or Treasure™ to more communities around the country.

National Wildlife Federation logo

Official Education Partner

UPS logo

Official Shipping Partner

Rubicon banners hanging at the New York Stock Exchange

About Rubicon

Rubicon is a leading provider of software-based waste, recycling, and fleet operations products for businesses and governments worldwide.

Learn about Rubicon