CLOSED LOOP Environmental Solutions and Simply Waste Solutions have joined forces to launch a new cost-efficient paper cup recycling scheme.
The new service, called Simply Cups, will provide paper cup manufacturers, organisations operating in the supply chain as well as beverage and hospitality outlets with a collection and recycling service to recover the paper and plastic used in the production of the disposable drinking containers.
According to Closed Loop, since the collapse of Britain’s only recycling scheme, an estimated 2.5 billion paper cups used each year across the UK have been sent to general waste for landfill rather than recycled.
Previous attempts to operate a cup recycling service failed because the right technology was not available in order to separate the polyethylene lining from the cardboard content at an economically viable rate. However, there are now currently a number of processing plants in the UK which can perform this task at a cost that makes it attractive for any business that uses paper cups.
Peter Goodwin, director of Closed Loop commented, “For too long paper cup recycling has literally been in its cups. Our new service will provide any business, operating within the hospitality and beverage supply chain, with a cup collection and recycling service that will in fact help reduce their overall waste disposal costs. This will be game-changing for cup manufacturers and beverage outlets that are have been caught in the media spotlight due to the absence of any recycling solutions”.
James Capel, managing director of Simply Waste Solutions added, “The bulk collection of cups will be processed here in the UK, and once the materials are recovered they will be manufactured into new end-use products all within the UK, which is a perfect example of how recycling should work”.
Simply Cups is being launched on 1 August in the UK and will initially operate within the M25 and Thames Valley area but is expected to quickly expand nationwide.
