Hannaford Sponsors Maine Recycles Championship

Hannaford Supermarkets and recycling company Clynk have teamed up to present the first Maine Recycles Championship, a statewide competition that will raise money for schools while encouraging children and their communities to recycle.

Schools that sign up for the competition will collect and recycle using the 46 Clynk’s bottle redemption kiosks, which are exclusively located inside Hannaford’s Maine locations, between Feb. 26 and April 29.

Since 1978, the Pine Tree State has required a cash deposit of 5 cents on beverage cans and 15 cents on glass bottles for wine and liquor.

Each school will receive the redemption monies it earns during the competition. Plus, prizes will be awarded to schools in two tiers: 400 students or more, and fewer than 400 students. One winning school in each tier will receive a grand prize of $2,000; second-place will get $1,000; and third-place will receive $500.

Students and supporters can track their schools' progress and see the environmental impact of their recycling online.

To teach Maine students about recycling, the South Portland, Maine-based Clynk has created six educational modules. Each module comes with a lesson guide, which parents and teachers can use at home or in the classroom. The lessons and other resources are available for free.

Hannaford Supermarkets, based in Scarborough, Maine, operates 176 stores in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont.