Mr.KsRecycle Redemption

Mr. K's Recycle and Redemption Center, Inc., started with Thomas T. Kadota, who had grown up during the Depression Era and appreciated making the most of every resource. He repurposed the 20-lb paper rice bags to protect bottles at the liquor store, and recycled glass bottles for a penny a pound in the '70's and '80's. A county recycling worker encouraged his son, Roy Kadota, to open a HI-5 redemption center, since Mr. Kadota already had bottles and cans from the two Kadota Family businesses, Kadota Liquors and K's Drive In. Roy Kadota got to know Oregon's comprehensive approach to recycling when he lived there as a student. When he returned to Hawai'i, he was awarded government grants to purchase a flatbed truck and recycling vending machines, and in 2009, Mr. K's Recycle and Redemption Center officially opened at 815 Kinoole Street.