Direct Marketing
Press Release written by Scott Salwolke
This April marks the 25th Anniversary of the Beverage Container Deposit Law. The deposit on beverage containers has brought about cleaner highways and less congested landfills. The law also resulted in a local partnership that has lasted over 
a decade and brought work to a segment of the population that for a long time couldn't find work.
This month, following a grant from the Solid Waste Commission, the Matod Recycling Center completes work on expansion of its facility. in the addition, Area Residential Care adds a larger, more efficient, conveyor line.
The expansion is the culmination of an alliance that began out of necessity. When Matod opened soon after the recycling bill passed, only a handful of workers sorted the cans. As their business increased, the company continued to have one problem, retaining workers.
"One morning I came in and five of our workers had just quit," remembers owner Bob Bleille. "All of us had to work hard to get the work done. We had met with people from ARC before, but now our discussions became more serious."
ARC was also sorting cans. Unfortunately they lacked a place to efficiently work. Their workers with disabilities sorted in the back of the training facility, loading cans onto flats.
With their operations combined, both problems were solved. ARC now had a facility in which to properly train their workers and Bleile no longer had to worry about employees.
The crew sort the cans by distributor, filling bags until they reach a specific number. Not all of the workers have the same speed;, which makes it an ideal job for many individuals.
"The crew members can work at their own pace," ARC Crew Forman Stephanie Duhme said. "One may only do two bags the entire day, while someone else may do that in an hour. They also learn the importance of teamwork."
Hundreds of cans pour down the line. In one year alone, over twenty million cans are sorted. To put this into perspective, these cans would fill a football field and stand over seven feet tall.
