letsrecycle.com

News in brief (04/07/2019)

With news on: First Mile paper cup partnership; Grundon books marks 90 years; Ward scoops family business prize, and; Faerch black tray solution.

Norman Grunon (holding the book) at the launch of The Road from Sand and Gravel

First Mile partners with Huhtamaki

London-based recycling company First Mile has partnered with food packaging firm Huhtamaki, in a collaboration aiming to increase the number of disposable coffee cups “effectively recycled in the UK”.

First Mile will offer coffee cup collection in London and Birmingham

The partnership will see First Mile collect compostable disposable cups from some of Huhtamaki’s customers throughout London and Birmingham from a variety of different coffee chains, restaurants, bars and other business premises throughout the cities.

The compostable cups will be processed via First Mile’s new compostable packaging recycling service, which will see them brought to the company’s factory in Acton, North London where it is turned into fertilizer.

First Mile founder and chief executive, Bruce Bratley, said: “This partnership is a great collaboration, pairing Huhtamaki’s objective of driving long-term sustainability, with First Mile’s innovative approach to making recycling easy for businesses.”


Book highlights Grundon’s growth

The chairman of waste management company Grundon has written a book to celebrate the firm’s 90th anniversary.

Norman Grunon (holding the book) at the launch of The Road from Sand & Gravel

Entitled ‘The Road from Sand & Gravel’, the book focuses on the family behind the name and charts the company’s history from its “humble origins with two men and a truck, through its growth as an aggregate extraction and haulage business, to its current position as the UK’s largest family-owned waste management company”.

Norman Grundon, chairman of the company and author of the book, said: “We’re delighted to mark our 90th year of business by taking time to reflect on the journey that we’ve been on since our formation in 1929.

“The most pleasing thing has been taking the opportunity to look back on the company’s achievements and those people who have contributed to our success, including our employees, customers and suppliers.”


Ward scoops family business award

Ward Recycling has bagged the 2019 Midlands & Central Family Business of the Year Award.

(l-r): Donald and Tracey Ward, from Ward.com receiving the 2019 Midlands and Central Family Business Award from Paul Andrews, Founder and Managing Director of Family Business United

The company, which specialises in metal recycling and waste management, is a fourth-generation family business operating from six UK sites and describes itself as the largest independent metal and waste recycling company in the East Midlands.

Paul Andrews, founder and managing director of Family Business United explained: “Ward are worthy winners and as a family firm for four generations remains innovative and ambitious with a reach not just in their region but across the UK.”


Faerch launches ‘evolve’ product

Food packaging company Faerch UK has launched its ‘Evolve’ product which it says is a solution to the UK challenge of black tray recycling.

Faerch says its new ‘Evolve’ polymer could be a solution to black plastic trays

Evolve by Faerch is made from an average of 85% recycled post-consumer PET content and are “reliably detected” by existing sorting infrastructure in the UK, and returned to the mixed jazz stream where they can be recycled into new food safe products.

As the products are created from a natural mix of recycled PET, the colours will vary, and the different palettes of colours enable consumers to recognise they use a recycled and circular product.

Spencer Johnston, Regional chief executive for Faerch UK & Ireland, said: “Evolve offers the consumers a ready meal tray that is made from recycled post-consumer material and that can be recycled again and again. This represents a significant step forward in packaging and enables consumers to make the switch to a sustainable solution.”

The company added that retailer interest in the product is “strong” as public demand for sustainable and circular products increases rapidly.

Share this article with others

Subscribe for free

Subscribe to receive our newsletters and to leave comments.

Back to top

Subscribe to our newsletter

Get the latest waste and recycling news straight to your inbox.

Subscribe