RSF Social Finance Makes a New Loan to Eureka Recycling

SAN FRANCISCO, February 19, 2014 /3BL Media/ - RSF Social Finance (RSF) is pleased to announce a new loan to Eureka Recycling, a non-profit recycler specializing in zero-waste. RSF financing will be used to purchase new recycling equipment which will help the company transform its operations, reducing operating costs and improving service to its clients.  

Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Eureka Recycling provides curbside recycling services to the Twin Cities of Saint Paul/Minneapolis and the metro area. Eureka Recycling is one of the largest non-profit recyclers in the United States and is a leader in demonstrating the best waste reduction and recycling practices not only for the Twin Cities metro area, but for the nation.

Eureka Recycling puts into practice a model of resource management rather than waste management, a model that assumes waste is preventable, not inevitable. As a mission-driven non-profit organization, Eureka Recycling looks beyond the bottom line to provide the best practices for recycling and consider the optimum balance of cost, personal convenience, and environmental benefit.

“We are not like many traditional non-profit environmental organizations because we have a large operation in which we manifest our mission each day,” says Tim Brownell, CEO of Eureka Recycling. “We believe that it is most powerful to advocate from a place in which we have rolled-up our sleeves to do the work and know that what we are of others is doable and will get the job done.” 

All of Eureka Recycling's efforts are designed to help individuals, organizations, and communities understand the significance of zero-waste and to achieve their own zero-waste goals. This includes activities beyond recycling such as encouraging reuse through the Twin Cities Free Market, a web-based program that connects community members to share durable goods that might otherwise end up in the landfill; composting services for restaurants, grocery stores, and other food businesses; and education and advocacy programs to promote community responsibility for waste-reduction.

“Eureka is much more than a recycling company,” says Mike Gabriel, lending manager at RSF. “This organization has deep roots in the community. And, with the breadth of services they provide, they’re really helping to build a vibrant and resilient local economy in the St. Paul area.”

The support and financing from RSF will also allow Eureka Recycling to launch their ‘Zero-Waste Lab,’ an education tool, feedback loop, and measurement device for governments, corporations, and communities.  “Now that zero-waste efforts are becoming more mainstream, there are many claims regarding policies, collection and processing designs, and packaging changes that are supposed to reduce or eliminate the growing waste stream,” explains Bryan Ukena, Business Development Director at Eureka Recycling. “Eureka’s Zero Waste Lab will actually help to distinguish those that are just talk from those that show true results.”

About RSF Social Finance

Located in San Francisco, CA, RSF Social Finance (RSF) is a financial services organization dedicated to transforming the way the world works with money. Since 1984, the organization has made over $275 million in loans and $100 million in grants to non-profit and for-profit social enterprises working in the areas of Food & Agriculture, Education & the Arts, and Ecological Stewardship. RSF's lending capital comes primarily from 1,500 individuals who have invested $1,000 or more in the organization's Social Investment Fund. Investors earn a competitive return on their money comparable to a certificate of deposit while their funds are deployed to leading social enterprises. To learn more, visit www.rsfsocialfinance.org

About Eureka Recycling

Based in Saint Paul, Eureka Recycling is one of the largest non-profit recyclers in the United States and the only organization in Minnesota that specializes in zero-waste. Eureka Recycling provides curbside recycling services to Saint Paul’s homes and apartments with a mission to demonstrate that waste is preventable, not inevitable. In addition, Eureka Recycling is a leader in waste reduction education, programs, and advocacy. To learn more, visit www.eurekarecycling.org

Contact

Mike Gabriel, Lending Manager

mike.gabriel@rsfsocialfinance.org

415.561.6192

Jillian McCoy, Communications Manager

jillian.mccoy@rsfsocialfinance.org

415.561.6156

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