A SERIES OF new loans has been made available to companies looking to increase business resource efficiency.
Capital loans are just one strand of the support package launched by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) for businesses, local authorities and those in the third sector looking to prevent waste or increase re-use and repair capacity across England.
Businesses developing new opportunities that prevent waste or use less products to deliver a service can apply to the Waste Prevention Loan Fund, which offers loans of between £100,000 and £1 million.
The aim of the fund is to help innovative businesses set up new business models where their traditional sources of finance may not see the commercial case. Simple examples include changing from product sales to service delivery or creating customer incentives to return products for re-manufacture, re-use or recycling.
In addition to the loan fund, WRAP may be able to help identify new finance partners who are better placed to understand and finance new business opportunities.
Waste Minister Lord Taylor of Holbeach, who officially announced the funding at the CIWM conference, said: The natural materials which our businesses rely on will become scarcer, so we need to develop new ways of designing, manufacturing and consuming goods so that we make the most of everything we use, rather than throwing it away at the end.
Matthew Broadbent, WRAP head of financial mechanisms, said that finding smart ways to prevent waste arising in the first place and then re-use or repair what is created makes pure business sense. We know there are lots of creative ideas out there so were looking for opportunities to scale these up to really make a bigger difference, driving green growth further and faster.
Footprint ran a new thought leaders and innovators conference in May. For more details check out Junes issue of Foodservice Footprint, out soon.
