Why Destroy Certain Products
If products you make or control fall into the wrong hands, could they do harm to others and consequently to you. For example, recalled or out of date products may be a health or safety risk. Conterfiet products may be a risk to your brand. Many think it is improper to rely upon your own employees to destroy these products. Once you recognize you have to destroy the products, then the question is who destroys them and why.
Uncertain Security of In-house Destruction
Your internal personnel should not be responsible for destroying certain products. Imagine your employee is destroying a recalled item, which that employee could sell at a flea market, eBay or Craigslist for $50? That is a great temptation for any (disgruntled) employee who considers themselves to be underpaid.
Discarding Products Is Not A Solution
Imagine a large bag in which you sell your product. Suppose the sales price of that bag filled with your product is $25. If the crook or disgruntled employee gets the bags, fills with inferior or dangerous products and sells it at the flea market for $10 each. Now image who is liable for the inferior or even dangerous product in the bag?
Imagine you have a recalled product, such as a bike helmet (or something that can hurt children). Your liability is huge. The lawsuits for such products have bankrupted companies. Imagine the product flaw is not noticeable. Now imagine their temptation to take the product out of the dumpster and resell the product at flea markets or on craigslist. You don't want to bet your companies future on the good nature of your employees.
Limit Your Liability
By the simple act of discarding products in the trash, the court system holds that the products are NOT valuable to you and therefore the court system will not support the protection of your ownership of those products. If the products are taken from a normally accessible dumpster, the court will not punish the dumpster diver for the simple act of taking the products.
The products (and your company) need protection through destruction Could your trash have ever included any of the following:
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Out of spec products
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Prototypes
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Recalled products
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Counterfeit products
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Security Products (Uniforms, badges, etc)
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Outdated packaging