As sustainability has become top of mind for the promo industry, there’s been a proliferation of products made from recycled materials – everything from tumblers to T-shirts.

The latest trend? Charging cables, wireless headphones, wireless phone chargers and other tech items made, in part, from recycled materials. When it comes to developing sustainable tech products, there are some challenges and built-in limitations, particularly when components like batteries and circuit boards are involved.

“Let’s not sugarcoat things,” says Alex Symms, director of sales for the West Coast brands of Top 40 supplier HPG (asi/61966). “There are electrical components in tech. You can’t have a recycled PC board or speaker. The power bank has to operate like it’s supposed to, but we can use recycled materials in the housing and the casing or be sustainable in how we imprint on them – using engraving, rather than ink.”

HPG’s (asi/61966) Origaudio brand recently launched a line of recycled tech products that includes the TerraTone headphones (98310), made from recycled ABS and recycled faux leather.

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HPG’s Origaudio brand recently launched the TerraTone collection, which includes earbuds, wireless headphones, a wireless speaker and a three-in-one charging cable; they’re all crafted to create a cohesive look, using recycled faux leather and recycled plastic. The ABS white plastic used in the casings – including the earbud case and outer shell of the headphones – is made from 80% recycled post-industrial waste, Symms says.

The recycled faux leather accents are made from 100% post-industrial polyurethane waste. Each product in the collection has a different overall percentage of recycled content depending on its composition, Symms adds, noting that the collection has been Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) certified by a third party. RCS, set by the Textile Exchange, is intended for use with any product that contains at least 5% recycled material.

Everson (asi/78135) has released a line of GRS-certified recycled tech products, including this magnetic wireless charger (13355).

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Yorba Linda, CA-based Everson (asi/78135) went a step further, seeking out Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certification for the wireless chargers and charging cables in its new “recycled eco products” line. GRS, also maintained by Textile Exchange, sets a higher criteria for third-party certification of recycled materials and chain of custody, requiring that a product include 50% or more recycled content by weight, and adhering to “additional social and environmental requirements related to processing and chemical use,” according to Textile Exchange’s website.

“It’s a long process,” says Andrew Blue, managing partner of Everson. “Every single step in the supply chain, from the guy who collects the plastic bottles to make the raw pellets to the one who’s assembling the product, each one has to be audited by a certified company.”

Blue says it took about a year of work to firm up the supply chain, adding that the recycled materials and involved auditing process added to the cost of the goods it’s producing. He estimates that the recycled raw materials themselves are about 20% more expensive than their traditional counterparts, on top of the extra time it takes to ensure the materials and production process are verified.

But, Blue adds, Everson believes the effort and cost are worth it, both because it’s better for the planet and because end-user demand is there. “We’ve invested a lot of money into the certification,” he says. “It’s definitely the future.”

Another aspect of sustainability when it comes to tech products is waste disposal. So-called e-waste is the fastest-growing solid-waste stream in the world, with around 53.6 million tons produced each year, but only 17.4% formally collected and recycled, according to stats from the World Health Organization.

That’s an area that B Corp-certified Nimble for Good (asi/73952), another supplier focused on sustainable tech accessories made with recycled materials, is tackling head-on. Each of the products include a recycled plastic bag that can be used to recycle old phones and other tech for free, as part of the brand’s “One-for-One Tech Recovery Project.”

“We kind of close the loop on electronics,” says Chris Goede of Nimble.

Thus far, Nimble has recycled more than 66,000 pounds of e-waste, phone cases and compact discs through the program, according to its website.

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