Green Toys dazzled us last year with their pastel-colored Cookware and Dining Set and Tea Set, both fortuitously launched shortly after the Great Lead Awakening of Christmas 2007. A sand play set and indoor gardening kit rounded out their first big round of toy releases, and the range of products had us wondering what they'd think of next.

Their latest round of toy releases brings their mission into sharp focus: Green Toys is out to recast the classics from recycled HDPE plastic. This would be a laudable enough goal on its own, but they're making many of them better in the process. They recently came out with a toy tool set, toy vehicles, a jump rope, and a flying disc.

The best evidence yet is in Green Toys' new line of recycled plastic trucks. We asked them to send us the iconic Recycling Truck, which features a dumping recycling chamber and flip-up back door. All it lacks is some recyclables - but you can make your own with scraps of newspaper and plastic water bottle caps.


Along with a snub-nosed, brilliantly colored Dump Truck, these vehicles put to rest any earlier fears we had that Green Toys wouldn't figure out how to get rich colors safely into recycled PET.


Aren't these gorgeous?

Everything about the recycling truck functions smoothly and pleasingly. The trucks are all-plastic, with cleverly-designed wheel components that offer a smooth ride without metal axles. An adult can take off the wheels in a couple of quick steps, but a child isn't likely to be able to at all, and even the recessed screws that hold together the vehicles' main bodies have user-friendly Philips' heads. Taking off the wheels will be a boon when giving these trucks a good rinse after a day spent in sandboxes and mud puddles.

All we wish is that they'd left a little more open room in the cab so we could wedge in some of Z's random toy friends as drivers and passengers, and I once even pined for openable doors; but for a rugged outdoor play toy, the fewer delicate parts, the better.

You can get Green Toys' Recycling Truck and Dump Truck on Amazon.com now for about $20 each, on sale from their list of $25. Considering the vehicles' size, durability, Made in the USA status and 100% recycled plastic free of lead, phthalates, and BPA, we think they're a bargain.

We'll review Green Toys' new Tool Set and Jump Rope in the next week or so - one of them is a ZRecs Top Pick, and the other left us lukewarm. Find out which is which on Z Recommends!