Discount department store Big W has partnered with recycling platform TerraCycle to launch a toy recycling scheme in all 176 stores nationwide.

After a trial in limited stores, the retailers’ Toys for Joy program collected over 18 tonnes of old toys.

The two companies say around 26.8 million toys are discarded in Australia every year, the majority placed in normal rubbish as they are not kerbside recyclable.

Big W MD, Pejman Okhovat says the program aims to reduce the number of toys that end up in landfills.

“Toys for Joy provides parents peace of mind knowing that as they declutter, they are disposing of old toys in a manner that helps to reduce landfills,” he said.

Jean Bailliard, GM of TerraCycle Australia, has praised Big W for providing an in-store recycling solution for parents.

“The program not only saves worn-out toys from landfill, but our recycling process also takes complex materials like metal, rubber and a variety of plastics and turns them into new materials for reuse.”

The program has also received praise from the environment minister, Sussan Ley. She said initiatives like Big W’s will change the national conversation around recycling.

Big W customers are encouraged to drop their pre-loved toys in the Toys for Joy chest placed in front of all Big W stores. Books, stationery, paintbrushes, playdough, board games, batteries, or oversized and wooden toys are not accepted.