Stuart Lendrum, Executive Director of OPRL said: “We committed to providing our members the tools and support they need to deliver against their Plastics Pact commitments six months ago and we’re proud to report on substantial progress. On Tuesday we were part of a broad partnership of brands and retailers taking part in the #LeedsByExample initiative, launching the first pilot of our recycling app We Recycle. This world-leading innovation gives consumers advice on recycling drinks containers and coffee cups on-the-go, including where the nearest recycling bin or reverse vending machine is, (piloting in Leeds city centre). Our plans to launch further pilots on a wider range of packaging are well advanced. This delivers the first steps on our Commitment #4.”
Jane Bevis, Chair of OPRL Ltd, added: “An essential part of ensuring more plastic packaging is recycled is ensuring consumers get the right recycling advice and find it easy to recycle. We’ve grown our membership by 28 percent – 64 companies – since April, a good start on the journey to 500 members by 2020, when we aim to see our well known and trusted recycling labels on nearly every piece of UK packaging. We’re delighted that companies such as McCain Foods, Albert Bartlett, Caffè Nero, Armitage Petcare and Just Pudding Basins, along with Greiner Packaging, FFP Packaging Solutions and Mondi Coatings, to name just a few, have joined us to engage consumers in recycling more effectively. That’s progress towards Commitments #2 and #9”
Substantial progress has also been made on further commitments:
- calls to action on labels reminding consumers to insert plastic straws into on-the-go drinks packaging (Commitment #1 delivered April 2018);
- targeting companies with high proportions of plastic as members, and working with trade associations and industry groups (Commitments #2 and #3 in progress), and;
- working collaboratively with WRAP and RECOUP to produce an industry-wide categorisation of recyclable and non-recyclable plastics (Commitment #5 well underway).
