The morning session was led by BBC Countryfile presenter Tom Heap, who, at last yearâs Conference sparked debate on the daily confusion of the consumer as to what plastics can and cannot be recycled. Heap, picking up where he had left off, quizzed the speakers and delegates to see if they felt that the plastics recycling industry had moved any further forward in giving clarity to the householder. The overwhelming feeling from the delegates was that the consumer was in fact no wiser and that contradictions within recycling collections remained.
Helmut Maurer from the European Commission was passionate in calling for action stating âwe cannot be continually saying year on year things have stayed the same, it is time now for actionâ, adding âthere is no time to waste in treating plastic as a valuable resourceâ. Maurer also called for an effective landfill ban on plastics as he predicted a doubling in recycling targets. Delegates were in agreement that there needed to be more communication to consumers about plastics recycling, to increase recycling levels and decrease contamination if plastics recycling levels are going to reach government targets.
Recoup CEO Stuart Foster informed the delegates how they had played their part this year in working to meet the consumer out and about to promote plastic recycling, often as collaborations and partnerships. But Foster also made a call for the industry to âdeliver on a practical levelâ.
Working with Marks & Spencer Recoup had engaged in consumer insight. Kevin Vyse from M & S also outlined how they were exploring the possibilities of reducing the types of plastic packaging placed on the market which would help solve the problem of consistency and remove the confusion for the consumer. Vyse stated that âdespite everything people still do not know what to do with plastics, that must changeâ.
BPI Recycling Products, External Affairs Director, aimed his presentation at busting the myth that the industry was in âcrisisâ and challenging the trade press on reports linking falling oil prices to recent high profile failures. He identified there were other reasons for such failures mainly connected with heavy reliance on public funding. Baxter questioned the audience to see if they supported his view point, and 81% of the delegates felt that the packaging and recycling press did not accurately reflect the health of the UK plastics recycling sector.
Other speakers from WRAP, the British Plastic Federation, the CO-OP, Buckinghamshire County Council, TOTAL, LARAC, Suez, Danone and Hahn plastics also shared their views and activities at the RECOUP annual conference which was a resounding success once again.
Next year’s conference is scheduled for the 28th of September in Peterborough.
