A quick WRAP up: What a year of plastics action achieved

by | May 30, 2019 | Blog

Recycling locally is in. This week, Malaysia followed China in taking a tougher stance on plastic waste imports – with mislabelled waste sent back to its country of origin. It’s time to think how the UK can create a better system for handling plastic waste.

Enter the UK Plastics Pact. The Pact, signed by businesses representing 85% of plastic sold through UK supermarkets, sets four targets. By 2025, signatories will eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging; make 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable; ensure 70% is actually recycled or composted; and achieve 30% average recycled content across all plastic packaging.

Last week, WRAP released the first annual report sharing progress against the Pact. I took a look: What’s going well? What could go better?

Highlighting the good

Exciting, innovative examples of progress are shared throughout the report. Black plastic – a challenge to recycle – is unsurprisingly a frequent focus. While many companies are working to curb its usage, Unilever is collaborating with waste management companies to introduce a new black pigment that can be detected by infra-red scanners and therefore recycled. Good news for TREssemé shampoo fans!

PepsiCo’s recycling trail of Walker’s Crisps packaging in partnership with TerraCycle is another interesting step forward – and one that I’m sure the many #PacketInWalkers consumers who posted back crisp packets last year will be intrigued to discover.

But a real strength of the report is its tabular company-by-company format. Transparently communicating the achievements and planned actions of individual signatories holds each accountable. It allows those who perform well to be recognized and rewarded. And the promise that WRAP will report on progress twice a year should maintain momentum towards the Pact’s goals.

A few future asks

The report style does – in a way – provide an overview of progress towards the Pact. But you have to work for it. There’s no simple summary tracking progress towards delivering the aims of the Pact’s Roadmap – which identifies key outcomes for April 2019 and a potential path to 2025. Indeed, the report is limited in scope, covering only a “selection of members.”

This isn’t helped by the different ways that companies report progress. Some, such as Aldi, report tonnes of plastic reduced by actions. Others leave us guessing. Greater consistency in reporting – in terms of the outcomes of actions rather than just the fact the activity was completed – would aid understanding.

It is year one. It’s clear companies are taking action. But it’s not easy to understand what exactly this action means. There’s an exciting story to tell here – and I’m eager to see if the next WRAP report makes it more accessible.

(Plastic) Ties that Bind

by | Oct 29, 2018 | Blog

Was it the jaunty plastic straw rammed up the nostril of a sea turtle?  Or maybe the sea horse clinging to a used cotton bud?  Or that Coke bottle inside the gut of an emaciated, very dead orca?

Visually speaking, single-use plastics are experiencing an animus horribilis.  The Instagram moments are many and the effect traumatising for those tasked with managing the reputations of the companies who dispense such plastics, especially when their brands are emblazoned on the litter.

The amazing functionality of so many of the villainous items is in reverse proportion to how much we now hate them. Take the disposable plastic water bottle: incredible design, engineering and manufacturing prowess brings us an everlasting vessel filled with fresh, fizzy, hygienic liquid no matter where we are in the world. And how about the plastic-foil laminate sachet which delivers safe, tasty tuna in gravy to our precious little kitty?

No matter how much you hate plastic, you must marvel at the design and engineering of modern packaging. Every bit as clever as a Breitling or Rolex. It’s such a pity to throw it away.

The terrifying thing about single use plastics is how many different items there are to worry about. My current fixation is with plastic ties – those whippy little bits of plastic magic that are used to lash things to lampposts, tie cables together and myriad of every-day uses, including temporary handcuffs ideal for sudden renditions.

Cable ties were invented in 1958 by Maurus C. Logan who worked for Thomas & Betts, an electrical company supplying cable to the aerospace industry. Now, made from nylon, they appear to be everywhere but mostly stranded on lampposts or lying on the ground after being cut and chucked.  Given their global ubiquity, it won’t be surprising to find them rammed up the nostril of a turtle or ringing the neck of a gull.

Fortunately, the next generation of ties are being made to be biodegradable and certainly less wasteful (such as the Rap-Tie that leaves no tail and can be undone and re-used). But given that plastic ties have been around for over 50 years, it’s going to be many more before we can walk past street furniture without seeing the trademark lashing leftovers. A constant reminder of the craziness of single-use plastic.