Food waste champion to help redistribute surplus to needy
Ben Elliot, the co-founder of luxury lifestyle company Quintessentially, is to advise the Government on a £15m fund to support charities redistributing food waste following his appointment as ‘food surplus and waste champion’. Elliot was appointed by Defra in the wake of the resources and waste strategy. The department said the champion would “work with […]
City of London Trials UK’s First All-Electric Refuse Collection Vehicle
The 26-tonne truck, named ‘Electra’, runs on lithium-ion batteries and is designed for urban environments with short routes and can complete a full 10-hour shift. The trial is part of a wider fightback against air pollution in the Square Mile. Its governing body, the City of London Corporation, works with businesses to improve air quality […]
Edinburgh hotel has become the first in the UK to be battery-powered.
The Gyle Premier Inn at Edinburgh Park has installed a five-tonne battery which will charge from the national grid during off-peak periods and power the 200-room site for several hours each day. The 3m3 lithium ion battery is expected to save the hotel £20,000 a year on its energy bill, and is able to power […]
Strategy ‘will require’ separate food waste collection
Collections Despite the big announcement, which is expected to divide opinion across the sector, Mr Stuart gave away few details in terms of the timeframe for the new policy. And, he also made no comment on whether food waste collections would have any knock-on effect on the frequency of residual waste collections. Addressing delegates at […]
Convenience is key to a successful deposit return scheme (DRS) in the UK, according to RECOUP.
Research undertaken by the charity showed 56% of consumers either wouldn’t travel or travel more than a mile to return empty containers, with only 14% being prepared to travel more than three miles. RECOUP therefore predicted kerbside schemes would continue to be used as the primary collection scheme for drinks containers by some consumers. Almost […]
So you already have a reusable bag but there are other ways to help the environment.
There’s a lot of focus on how we can all do more as individuals, so here are Newsbeat’s tips on how to be an eco-friendly shopper (and no, you don’t have to be vegan). Bring your own bottle BYOB is not just for parties. Some supermarkets are encouraging customers to bring their own containers. Morrisons […]
How one company eliminated food waste: ‘The landfill can no longer be an option’
Those carrot tops you’ve lopped off are not garbage. Your snapped-off green-bean stems are not scraps. They are what Thomas McQuillan, sustainability director for Baldor, a specialty foods and produce distributor, calls sparcs – “scraps” spelled backward and pronounced like “sparks.” And sparcs, despite popular assumption, are often just as edible as the rest of […]
Pringles cans can now be recycled in the UK
From December 2018, empty Pringles cans can be sent to TerraCycle using freepost labels in return for a charitable donation which can be redeemed at schools, charities or non-profits. Cans are then recycled with the resulting pellets used to create new products such as benches and fence posts. Pringles cans are not currently able to […]
The EU is planning to ban single-use plastics
Under the proposal, overwhelmingly backed by the European Parliament, 10 single-use plastic products with readily available alternatives would be banned by 2021. EU states would be obliged to recycle 90 percent of plastic bottles by 2025 and producers to help cover costs of waste management. “We are sending a strong signal to industry,” EU lawmaker […]
Landmark week of action to celebrate Clean Growth
Working in partnership with business and civil society, the government is introducing the first ever Green GB Week – an annual week designed to highlight the opportunities clean growth offers the UK and raise understanding of how business and the public can contribute to tackling climate change. The UK has led the world to date […]
How plastic-eating bacteria actually work – a chemist explains
The plastic bottles we throw away today will be around for hundreds of years. It’s one of the key reasons why the mounting plastic pollution problem, which is having a deadly effect on marine life, is so serious.. But scientists recently discovered a strain of bacteria that can literally eat the plastic used to make […]
Walkers Crisps introduces recycling scheme amid outcry over packaging waste
Walkers Crisps make 11 million packets of crisps a day. That makes for a lot of waste plastic. Following a petition in which 330,000 people called for action on packaging, the company has announced it will introduce a recycling scheme It comes after campaigners began posting the packets – a combination of plastic and foil […]