The new partnership has the objective of increasing investment in the existing UK recycling infrastructure and in stimulating investment in new sector innovation.
The UK arm of global food and beverage company Danone has signed a three-year deal that will see Ecosurety manage their packaging waste recycling obligations in the UK, ensuring the highest possible standards of transparency and traceability are adhered to.
The new partnership will also help activate investment into recycling innovation and education, helping to build UK capacity and contribute towards developing a circular economy in the UK.
Danone is one of the world’s largest food and beverage producers and recognises the impact that it can have through its commitment to reducing and recycling its packaging waste. It currently recycles more than 80% of its used packaging and is working to further improve this through the new partnership with Ecosurety, which will enable Danone to further offset its impact on the environment via investment into innovation and improved UK recycling infrastructure.
Help increase the UK’s recycling capacity
In line with its core business model, Ecosurety will prioritise the purchase of Danone’s PRN’s from UK reprocessors to ensure reinvestment into the UK’s recycling system. In this way, Danone will help to support innovative new recycling techniques and the building of new recycling capacity.
This dynamic approach that Ecosurety have championed will help increase the UK’s capacity to recycle its packaging waste including problematic types of plastic packaging.
Recent figures from Defra show that 66% of the UK’s recycling is currently shipped abroad, where it is harder to monitor environmental standards. Taking a more strategic approach to investing via the PRN model into building recycling capacity in the UK will help to address this problem, reducing the amount of untraceable waste material shipped overseas for reprocessing.
Ambition to lead in the sustainability sector
Caroline Winters, Director of public affairs at Danone, commented “As a multinational business with an ambition to lead in the sustainability sector, recycling is an area that we are particularly focused on improving.”
“Ecosurety’s approach to traceability and tangible reinvestment in the recycling sector resonated with our own environmental business objectives. This is the start of an impactful new partnership and we look forward to working with Ecosurety.”
Meanwhile, James Piper, Managing Director of Ecosurety commented “We are determined to show that recycling compliance doesn’t need to be perceived of as a tax, but rather a positive feedback system that benefits producer, consumer and planet.”
“We’re delighted that Danone recognise this, and the long-term potential of our business approach. Danone is a company that shares many of our sustainability objectives and it is great to have them on board.”
Rigorous standards of environmental performance
Danone recently secured B Corp status for its dairy business operation in the UK, recognising its rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. Its ambition is to become one of the first multinationals to secure B Corp accreditation across its global operations.
This October, Danone was also one of a number of big name brands to support the innovative #LeedsByExample on-the-go recycling initiative. The campaign, set up by Ecosurety and behaviour change charity Hubbub, is using a range of interactive tools and educational techniques to improve recycling on-the-go. It is being trialled for six months in the city of Leeds.
Packaging 360 is a comprehensive knowledge sharing ecosystem for the Indian packaging industry. Our services include an online content platform to deliver news, insights and case studies; organising conferences seminars and customised training; Providing Bespoke Project Consulting, Market Research and Intelligence.
