Retailer aims for green

Target Corp. is working on amping up its “green credibility” this Earth Month by installing recycling bins in all its stores, making it the first major retailer to offer its customers multiple recycling options, according to the Reuters Environmental Online Report.

In early April, the No. 2 discount-retailer started adding bins for items such as plastic bags, beverage cans and bottles, cell phones and MP3 players. The company already recycles and reuses items behind closed doors such as packing boxes and hangers to reduce overall waste, but hopes the recycle bins in plain view will attract the attention of eco-friendly customers, said Shawn Gensch, Target’s vice president for brand marketing.

The retailer expects the recycling program to pay for itself by selling some of the materials—such as plastic bags—to companies that can recycle the materials into new products. The program will also avoid creating additional air pollution by sending recycled materials back to Target’s distribution centers on the same trucks that make deliveries to the stores.