Media

• All RBH smoke-free products can now be recycled or disposed of safely in anti-littering initiative

• Recycling program to take and recycle vape pods from any competitor brand in Canada – an industry first 

TORONTO, ON, October 20, 2021 – Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. (RBH) will recycle vaping devices, pods – including those from competitors – and accessories as well as heated tobacco devices as it advances a more smoke-free and sustainable future for the industry with its new, national Smoke-Free Recycling Program.

With the Smoke-Free Recycling Program, RBH’s entire portfolio of smoke-free products can now be recycled or disposed of across Canada. Consumers can recycle, or dispose of safely, smoke-free products (vape pods, vape devices, used heated tobacco sticks, and heated tobacco devices) as well as cigarette butts. In addition to RBH products, the Smoke-Free Recycling Program will also accept and recycle vape pods from any competitor brand in Canada, an industry first. 

These products can be collected and recycled in two ways. First, they can be mailed in at no cost to the consumer directly from their home or business. Second, consumers can drop the products off in a box receptacle inside one of a select number of retail partner locations – the receptacle boxes will be in participating locations by the end of November. RBH invites other retail partners to sign up to carry the receptacles in their locations and collaborate in the push towards a more sustainable future.

RBH has partnered with a global leader in recycling to build the Smoke-Free Recycling Program. In addition to the launch of this new recycling program, a full-scale research and development trial will begin to develop a recycling solution that doesn’t rely on incineration for vaporizer cartridges.

This announcement follows RBH’s recently introduced vaping product for adult nicotine consumers. This program further demonstrates how vaping products can be developed, marketed, and disposed of responsibly.    

RBH, as part of its vision to make Canada smoke-free by 2035, is committed to sustainability. The company launched a national cleanup program and, in 2020, more than 280,000 individuals volunteered to participate and cleaned up 1,031,926 lbs. of litter. RBH has reduced energy use in its Quebec City factory by 40 per cent and launched a national cigarette butt recycling program to tackle one of the most littered items in Canada – to date, more than 160,736,180 cigarette butts have been collected and recycled.

To find out more about RBH’s Smoke-Free Recycling Program and to learn about the company’s sustainability efforts, visit: https://www.rbhinc.ca/home/how-we-give-back   

QUOTE: Peter Luongo, Managing Director, RBH:

• We see ourselves as leaders in our industry when it comes to championing sustainability in Canada, which is why we committed to recycling all vape pods regardless of who manufactured them.  

• As we transform our business and work to eliminate cigarettes in Canada, we recognize the need for sustainability to be a core part of that transformation. 

• Our new Smoke-Free Recycling Program is another way of fulfilling our product stewardship role and taking action to minimize the environmental impact of our products and our operations. 

• With our new recycling program, we worked with our customers and shaped it around their feedback. Having our entire product portfolio recyclable or able to be disposed of is responsible and helps contribute to a circular economy. 

We are not going to stand still. We want to have a positive impact and create a smoke-free and waste-free future.