The dump has become a mattress wasteland with around 300,000 mattresses ending up in New Zealand landfills every year.
But while Kiwis may not see the value in an old, lifeless mattress around three-quarters of its material can be recycled.
So instead of sending your old mattress to the dumping ground a new intuitive has put environmental waste to bed, launching a mattress recycling solution.
Andoo, an online furniture, bedding and appliance retailer, has teamed up with All Heart NZ to launch New Zealand’s first business-led mattress recycling solution.
Andoo launched in the New Zealand market in March 2022 and allows customers to remove their old products free of charge when purchasing a new item by clicking the 'removal of old products' option when adding to cart.
The team will come collect their customers' old mattresses and they will be taken and recycled through their new recycling solution.
In December, Andoo funded a trial for All Heart NZ to dismantle mattresses collected from customers and had been stored at their Auckland Distribution Centre. It found they were able to recycle 77 percent of mattress components, keeping a significant proportion of mattresses out of landfills.
"For us, it's not about the cost but diverting waste from landfill," Andoo NZ country manager Troy Tindill told Newshub.
All Heart NZ is a charitable trust which uses funds raised through its sustainability services to support partner organisations to reduce poverty, increase access to education and provide well-being services. To date, All Heart NZ has diverted over 4774 tonnes of goods from landfill and helped more than 466 communities across Aotearoa, having raised or saved over $14 million.
All Heart's sustainability development manager Colinda Rowe said over half of the mattress is metal springs which can be recycled and the foam padding can be turned into carpet underlay. If the cotton and felt are in good condition they can be turned into cushions.
Rowe said some older mattresses are made with coconut fibre which can be used in gardening.
But if you drop your mattress off at the dump nothing gets recycled at all.
