Returning Coolers and Egg Cartons for Reuse

Every month we get a MOUNTAIN of egg cartons and home delivery coolers to reuse - it is part of what makes TC Farm so special!

We need your help to make reusing items sustainable:

Egg Carton Returns

1. Never return dirty or damaged items. Nobody wants to receive egg cartons with spilled egg stains - so don't send them back to us, that just wastes time and causes other clean cartons to be damaged.
   
   
2. Open and stack all egg cartons -- do NOT return cartons closed. We spend hours every week opening and stacking egg cartons. This isn't sustainable and if we can't get them all returned stacked nicely together, we will have to stop the reuse of cartons.
   
3. Only return dozen sized cartons (not 18 egg cartons) - they can be from any farm and we will reuse them, but seriously those eggs that say 'pasture' in the grocery are NOT raised on green pasture. Check out this article about the colorants used in other eggs to make the yolks darker.
   
4. Make sure to put them in a cooler. Whether a meat cooler or the egg cooler, you want to keep your egg cartons dry. With rain and snow, those coolers you've taken care to stack so nicely could quickly turn into mushy garbage.
   
5. Don't cover up other people's food. Members will sometimes call us at the neighborhood pickup site to say their food isn't there because it has been hidden by empty egg cartons. When you stack them in a cooler, be sure to not cover up other people's monthly deliveries.

Home Delivery Cooler Returns

1. Remove the label with your name on it. This seems like a minor thing, but it is a HUGE help. If not, we have to remove the labels while packing up the next delivery -- in the freezer -- our cold fingers will THANK YOU if you remove the labels before returning
   
2. Leave out for pickup at your next delivery. If possible, put a brick or rock on top of the cooler. If it is windy, we don't want the coolers blowing all over the neighborhood.
   
3. We hate the waste caused of disposable items, so please keep these coolers in good shape and return. Coolers must be outside by 7:30am on the delivery day - if needed, you may return to a neighborhood pickup site, but this is less ideal since the host needs to then find room to store until the following month, so limit this option if at all possible.

If YOU want your first home delivery, adjust your default on the portal under 'Your Account' and 'Pickup Location' (Home deliveries are the second item in the list!)

Reusing items like this is great for the environment - please help us keep doing this important work!