SITA to double size of business food waste service

SITA plans to double the size of its business food waste collection service by the end of 2011 after a successful first year for its London operations.

The company is aiming to expand the service across the south and central regions of England, after significant growth in and around the capital in the 12 months since its April 2010 launch saw it acquire more than 800 customers.

These include a number of high-profile pub chains, Government offices and restaurants, which all have their food waste collected separately using five bespoke food and glass collection vehicles.

As well as offering a collection system using biobag liners, which are contained in caddies, staff working on the food collection service have been educating businesses on the need and benefits of recycling food waste.

SITA UK also provides customers with carbon-related information on their waste generation to help them reduce their carbon impact.

Graham Mayes, the companys chief operating officer, said it was on track for the aims it had when originally launching the service in London in April 2010 (see letsrecycle.com story).

Major cities

These were to establish the service in the capital and to roll it out to other areas, including major cities in the south and centre of England, by the end of this year.

Our customers know a good idea when they see one and they can see the real benefit of collecting food waste at the same time as their glass, which is an efficient and cost-effective way of reducing their carbon footprint, he said.

We are confident that this exciting new service will go from strength to strength this year and into 2012, he added.

The service was launched in the capital to coincide with the Mayor of London, Boris Johnsons ambitions to increase food waste collections in London (see letsrecycle.com story).

While initially waste is being sent to treatment at SITAs in-vessel composting facilities in the Midlands, the firm eventually plans to send material collected in London to the 100,000 tonne-a-year anaerobic digestion plant it is aiming to build at Mitcham in South-West London (see letsrecycle.com story).