These toys, sold by Mattel Inc., are part of a push by the $104 billion global toy industry to make its overwhelmingly plastic products more sustainable amid a plastic pollution crisis.
Photographer: Kelsey McClellan for Bloomberg Green
This Barbie Used to Be Trash
Mattel is trying to confront the plastic-pollution crisis with 33 toys it says are sustainable.
You can now buy a Matchbox Tesla Roadster that’s built from 99% recycled materials and certified as carbon neutral. A new Barbie, meanwhile, is made of recycled plastic trash collected in Mexico before it can pollute the Pacific Ocean. And toddlers can install plant-based plastic solar panels on the Mega Bloks Build & Learn Eco House.
These toys, sold by Mattel Inc., are part of a push by the $104 billion global toy industry to make its overwhelmingly plastic products more sustainable amid a plastic pollution crisis. Hasbro Inc. announced last year that the toy formerly known as Mr. Potato Head would be made from plant-based or renewable materials by the end of 2024. Lego Group is making some of its building set accessories out of a plastic derived from Brazilian sugar cane and experimenting with turning recycled plastic bottles into its beloved bricks.