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Lidl launches city-wide drinks packaging recycling scheme

Posted on February 13, 2024 by dishanth

Shoppers will be able to deposit any single-use drinks packaging made from either PET plastic or aluminium, between 100ml and three litres in size. Barcodes must be attached and readable.

Collected packaging will be sent for recycling. Lidl is aiming to capture at least 10.5 tonnes of material every month.

The launch of the scheme is intended to go some way to preparing customers for Scotland’s nationwide deposit return scheme (DRS) for drinks packaging, which was due to launch last August but was delayed until March 2024.

Further delays could yet be announced due to backlash from some retailers, plus the fact that a UK-wide DRS is not due to launch until early 2025 at the soonest.

DRS initiatives see a levy placed on beverages, which customers can only claim back after returning their used packaging to a certified collection point for recycling.

But Lidl has elected not to add a levy to its beverages at present. Instead, customers will receive a 5p reward for every bottle or can returned, with no limit on the amount that each person can claim. They can receive the rewards as either a voucher for money off their next shop, or as a donation to Lidl’s charity partner in Scotland, STV Children’s appeal. The appeal supports children in poverty with education, mental health care, social activities and necessities like food and clothing.

Lidl GB’s chief commercial officer Richard Bourns described the initiative as “a win-win for all”.

He said: “We’re on a mission to eliminate all unnecessary waste, and with over 95% of our own-brand packaging now recyclable, reusable, or refillable we’ve been making great progress. We know that Lidl shoppers share this passion, and we hope that utilising this infrastructure, which might otherwise have been left dormant, will help to make recycling their cans and bottles even more convenient for them.”

Source edie

Danish City First To Test Return System For Reusable Coffee Cups

Posted on February 7, 2024 by dishanth

The Danish city of Aarhus launched a three-year trial program to curve down the number of disposable coffee cups where locals can use a deposit system for reusable takeaway packages.

Like in other Nordic and Central European countries, in Denmark deposit system where one receives back money one pays when purchasing a plastic bottles or cans is already in place

The project that focused on eliminating disposable cups trash is the result of a collaboration between the Municipality of Aarhus and the recycling company TOMRA which already provides other waste collection services to the city.

For a year and a half in 2022, the company All In On Green’s robotic arm SeaProtectorOne deployed in the water, collected over 100,000 disposable glasses from the city’s river Å – from which the city derived its name – demonstrating a huge level of plastic pollution in the city.

”Aarhus must be greener and more sustainable, and Aarhus must be a city where we have the courage to test new solutions.” said Nicolaj Bang, Aarhus’ councillor for technology and environment in a press release. “We use enormous amounts of takeaway packaging in Denmark, and consumption is increasing. Therefore, it really matters if we can make it easier for both consumers and businesses to choose a more sustainable alternative to disposable packaging,” he stated.

Aarhus is the second biggest city in Denmark, counting around 336,000 inhabitants – and potential disposable cup users. The trial has been set as voluntary, but so far already 44 cafés and bars in the center of the city got interested in the project – perhaps even some frequented by King Frederik X, when he used to study at the city’s university.

Initially, 40,000 cups in two designs will be produced and around 25 deposit machines will be established in the city so that citizens can return their cups, and cash back some Danish kroner. Geir Sæther, senior vice president for circular economy at TOMRA said the company expects ‘to be able to expand the system to other types of packaging in the near future’, so to facilitate the transition from single-use to reusable packaging.

The return fee for a reused cup is just over 70 dollar cents (DKK 5) , but it is not for the money that citizens should start returning their cups: ”Recycling saves the earth’s resources and our emission of CO2. More recycling means that there is less waste that ends up as rubbish in our city and our nature,” said Bang.

This is the first city in Denmark, and the world, to carry out such city experiments, although Copenhagen had previously trialed an experimental system where pizza containers, sushi trays and coffee cups should be able to be returned in the hip area of Kødbyen, situated in a central neighborhood. Currently, Danish startup Kleen hub is experimenting in the capital with its third-generation return system based on a single bank card tap.

TOMRA’s ceo Tove Andersen said in a press release that “Aarhus shows the way to one more sustainable future, and we hope that many more cities will be inspired to do the same,”.

Cities and regional authorities have so far acted upon consumer behaviors to decrease different kinds of pollution in their cities: “These policies are quietly working because local governments are addressing climate change with communities long-term together with other challenges that people care about, like healthy diets and supporting local businesses,” said Olivier de Schutter, co-chair of the sustainable food system expert team IPES-Food.

Source Forbes

JDE Peet’s announce new sustainable coffee packaging

Posted on July 21, 2023July 21, 2023 by dishanth

JDE Peet’s is an American-Dutch coffee and tea company with a portfolio of over 50 brands including L’OR, Peet’s, Jacobs, Senseo, Tassimo, Douwe Egberts, Old Town, Super, Pickwick and Moccona.

In 2022, JDE Peet’s generated total sales of US$9.2bn, employed a global workforce of more than 20,000 employees and served approximately 4,200 cups of coffee or tea per second.

Pioneers: Sustainable packaging launch

JDE Peet’s have launched a first-of-its-kind packaging for its soluble coffee ranges as part of its net zero sustainability initiatives.

The paper packaging is recyclable and encourages consumers to reuse glass and plastic jars already in circulation.

“This is an important step in driving the sustainability agenda of our company and yet another sign of our leadership in innovation. We know that reducing packaging and promoting recyclability and reusability are increasing consumer needs,” says Fabien Simon, CEO of JDE Peet’s.

“By providing more sustainable solutions within soluble coffee, one of the world’s most beloved and consumed beverages, we can maximize our positive contribution in decarbonizing our own portfolios and the coffee market as a whole.”

Sustainability at the heart of coffee production

The packaging launch supports JDE Peet’s efforts to use 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2030 — 78% of its packaging is currently.

The company’s ESG initiatives operate throughout the brands, from sustainable sourcing, to burning waste coffee at factories to save landfill.

The Common Grounds programme champions an inclusive and regenerative ecosystem comprised of three pillars:

Responsible Sourcing — championing regenerative agriculture to enhance livelihoods and positively impact our planet. JDE Peet’s achieved its goal of 100% responsibly sourced palm oil by 2025 three years early.
Minimizing Footprint — striving towards a planet-positive supply chain through innovation and collaboration on sustainable solutions. JDE Peet’s has achieved zero waste-to-landfill at 22 of its 43 manufacturing facilities, and is aiming for all 43 by 2025.
Connecting People — engaging colleagues and communities to support wellbeing and promote equal opportunity. JDE Peet’s have 40% women in leadership positions, a target it had set for 2025.

“Having set carbon reduction targets with the science based targets initiative, we priorities energy efficiency projects,” says Dyfrig Davies, Engineering Manager at the JDE Coffee Manufacturing Factory in Banbury, UK.

“We’ve committed to these targets and now we have to deliver them. we’re taking action for humanity — and doing right by the planet is the right thing to do for our business as well.”

Source Sustainability

German train operator to swap plastic cups and plates for porcelain in carbon-neutral drive

Posted on January 11, 2023 by dishanth

German train operator Deutsche Bahn will offer onboard food and drink in porcelain or glass to cut waste onboard its intercity and high-speed train services from 1 January 2023.

The reusable cups, plates and bowls will be free for customers to eat or drink from when ordering to-go products at the train’s bistro area, though passengers can still request plastic and cardboard packaging if they prefer it.

Rail customers will be able to choose between “high-quality” glass or porcelain for hot and cold drinks or food without needing to pay a deposit.

Deutsche Bahn’s passenger services chief Michael Peterson has said the “company is ‘driving forward its green transformation in onboard catering’”,The Guardian reported.

The move also lines up with a new supply chain law taking effect from January in Germany, which considers the environmental impact of medium and large companies.

The Supply Chain Act was passed in June 2021 by German parliament, and incorporates social responsibility as well as specific environmental risks.

Within this, all restaurants and cafes will be required to provide takeaway products in reusable packaging. There won’t be a single-use packaging ban, but a free alternative must be presented to consumers.

Sustainability is at the forefront of Deutsche Bahn’s core brand messaging, with the rail operator’s ‘This is green’ tagline signposting travellers to specified climate protection goals the company has outlined.

For example, according to the rail operator’s website, by 2030 Deutsche Bahn will have halved the amount of CO2 emissions produced. it’s also stated online that Deutsche Bahn already recycle more than 95 percent of the raw materials used.

Deutsche Bahn has set itself the goal of being climate neutral by 2040.

“To achieve this, we are utilizing an approach with three critical instruments: the shift to 100 per cent renewable power, the end of diesel and the start of the heat transition,” the German rail operator’s website says.

In August, rail analysts reported that short-distance train travel in Germany had increased by almost half after the new ticket was introduced.

Source INDEPENDENT

Zara launched pre-owned service for shoppers to resell, repair or donate items

Posted on November 23, 2022November 23, 2022 by dishanth

Zara launched a pre-owned service that will let UK customers resell, repair or donate clothing from the brand.

The Spanish fashion giant, owned by Inditex, launched Zara Pre-Owned on 3 November as part of its environmental sustainability commitments.

Shoppers can post second-hand Zara items for sale through the service, as well as book repairs and donate unwanted items online or through a store.

The platform will be hosted on Zara’s website and app, with transactions going through the Stripe system.

Similar to existing resale apps like Vinted, shopper can upload pictures of their items with detailed product information. The buyers’ details will be passed on to the seller once a sale is made so the goods can be posted.

If customers are seeking to repair their Zara clothes, they can book a wide range of options from replacing buttons and zippers to fixing seams.

Customers can also request for unwanted clothing to be collected from their home for donation.

Paula Ampuero, head of sustainability at Zara, said that Zara Pre-Owned is not expected to be profitable in its early stages.

“At this stage, this platform is exclusively conceived as a tool to help customers extend the lifetime of their clothing and take a more circular approach.”

Fast fashion brands have come under mounting pressure to tackle the industry’s high carbon footprint and introduce more sustainable practices instead of encouraging “throwaway” culture.

Several retailers, including Zara and H&M, currently run recycling schemes that allows shoppers to give them unwanted textiles that can be sorted and recycled to make into new clothes and fabrics.

Earlier this year, Marks & Spencer said it became the first major high street brand to enter the resale market when it announced a trial partnership with the Dotte Resale Collective.

Dotte is a fully circular childrenswear resale marketplace that lets parents with young children buy, sell, donate, and recycle clothes they have outgrown.

John Lewis also launched a rewards scheme for members who bring in five items of clothing to be resold or recycled. The retailer said it launched the scheme because more than 300,000 tonnes of textiles end up in landfill each year.

Source The Independent

Google launches circular economy accelerator for start-ups as Starbucks allocates £1.4m to refill innovations

Posted on October 20, 2022 by dishanth

Google has today (4 October) opened a new accelerator called ‘Google for Startups: Circular Economy’ to applications from the US and the Asia-Pacific region.

The accelerator will provide startups and nonprofits with training, mentoring and technical support from Google’s engineers and other experts as they work to scale solutions that reduce waste.

Organisations working in the food, fashion, built environment and materials science sectors are being invited to apply to the accelerator before 14 November. They will need to be working on projects that reduce material use in the first instance, through innovative design or reuse solutions, or be developing recycling or compositing innovations.

Google said in a statement that it is “imperative we shift our management of materials towards a circular economy model” for environmental, economic and social reasons.

Bring it Back Fund

In related news, Starbucks UK has announced seven projects to receive a share of its £1.4 ‘Bring it Back’ fund, launched in a bid to support innovative reuse solutions for food and beverage packaging. The money has been raised through the coffee chain’s charge on single-use paper cups and environmental charity Hubbub has been assisting Starbucks UK with the fund allocation.

In the public and third sectors, funding will be provided to Keep Scotland Beautiful as it trials a large-scale reusable cup scheme in the Highlands. Charities RECOUP and PECT will also receive funding for research into perceptions around reusable packaging and practical barriers to adoption, with Peterborough as a base.

In the private sector, reuse-as-a-service startup junee will be supported to undertake trials with Mercato Metropolitano food market in South London and packaging cleaning facility network Again will test doorstep collection for takeaway packaging in central London.

Further North, in Bradford, returnable packaging system Green Street will be supported to expand to more cades and restaurants and to trial a digital rewards platform. And, finally, in Edinburgh, Reath Technology will receive funding for their next-generation reuse tracking software using RFID technology.

Hubbub’s co-founder and director Gavin Ellis said: “The winning projects offer a strong mix of innovative solutions, from brand new reuse system trials to behaviour change research and funding developments in technology. With this funding, we will be able to test and learn from real-world trials and hopefully demonstrate that reuse systems are safe and easy to use, and can benefit the food and drink industry, consumers and the environment.”

Starbucks UK’s general manager Alex Rayner added: “It is important for us as a company that we continue to drive industry-wide innovation, as we work to increase reusability and inspire greater reusables uptake in local communities across the UK.”

Source edie