Tag Archives: Bottles

Highland Spring to roll out recycled plastic eco bottles

Highland Spring set to launch its eco bottle, made from 100% recycled plastic.

Following a successful 2018 trial, the Highland Spring eco bottle will launch this month will join the existing Highland Spring natural source water range, where all bottles are 100% recyclable.

The bottle is made from 100% recycled plastic, although the label and cap are not made from recycled plastic; bottle, label and cap are 100% recyclable.

The mineral water giant said its consumers had expressed a ‘significant’ desire for more eco bottles at trial stage, and this launch will be followed by more 100% recycled and recyclable plastic eco bottles later in the year.

Highland Spring Group Chief Executive, Les Montgomery, said: “We are grateful to shoppers who gave us their thoughts and feedback, throughout the trial. They asked us to make the eco bottle a permanent addition to the Highland Spring family and we are proud to say that is exactly what we have done.

“Increasing our use of recycled plastic is an absolute priority for Highland Spring and this is a hugely exciting step in our mission to provide healthy hydration choices in environmentally sustainable ways. We hope that having innovative products such as the eco bottle in supermarkets alongside 100% recyclable bottles will help shoppers understand more about plastic as a valuable resource that should not be treated as waste.”

Borough Market to have free drinking water fountains

Borough Market to phase out plastic bottles with free drinking water fountains.

Borough Market to have free drinking water fountains

London’s Borough market has claimed that the introduction of free drinking water fountains is a big step towards the area becoming “plastic free”.

Three water fountains have been placed around the market and each has two streams of water to drink or fill up a bottle. Plans are currently in place to produce Borough Market refillable bottles made from recycled plastic that can be purchased from stalls around the market.

Borough market intends to phase out all sales of single use plastic at the market over the next six months.

Darren Henaghan, managing director of Borough Market, said: “It’s great that people are increasingly aware of the health benefits of keeping hydrated, but we’ve been troubled to see increasing numbers of plastic bottles used every day, which damage the environment and add to litter.

“By using the new Borough Fountains our visitors will be able to refill and refresh without having to buy a plastic bottle each time.  We are proud to take this significant step forward as part of our ongoing commitment to making Borough Market Britain’s greenest place to shop and hope that others will follow suit.”

Pringles and Lucozade Recycling Villains

Pringles tubes and Lucozade Sports bottles are the “villains” of the recycling world, according to The Recycling Association.

Pringles and Lucozade Recycling Villains

The Recycling Association named them in a list of products that pose the biggest challenges for recycling and reuse.

The popular Pringles carton has been replicated by own-brand retailers in what’s become known as the “Pringleisation” of packaging.

With its metal base, plastic cap, metal tear-off lid, and foil-lined cardboard sleeve – Pringles’ combination of materials make the packaging harder to separate and were described in the report as a “nightmare”.

The Lucozade’s bottle is recyclable but, again, its combination of materials featuring a sleeve made from a different kind of plastic makes recycling hard.

Simon Ellin, chief executive of the UK Recycling Association, said: “Improvements are desperately needed in product design.”

UIN what appeared to be in part a personal vision, he outlined what he deemed as the worst recycling offenders:

–           Pringles (and products with similar packaging): “Number One recycling villain. These things are a… nightmare. Impossible to separate the parts.”

–           Lucozade Sport (and drinks with similar packaging): “Number Two villain. This bottle is so confusing to computer scanners that it has to be picked by hand off the recycling conveyor. Then it often just gets chucked away.”

–           Cleaning spray bottles: “Labels often say the product is recyclable, but that’s only the body. The spray has two or three other polymers and a metal spring. It’s almost impossible.”

–           Black plastic food trays: “Supermarkets think black trays make meat look redder so they colour the tray black but that makes it worthless for recycling. Also, if someone leaves the torn film on the tray, with a bloody card below it, we just have to chuck it anyway.”

–           Whisky packaging: “It grieves me to say this as one who likes his whisky but whisky causes us problems. The metal bottom and top to the sleeve, the glass bottle, the metal cap… very hard for us.”

A £1.5m prize for inventors to design products that are practical and easily recycled will soon be launched by Prince Charles.

The Plastics Economy Innovation Prize, promoted by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, features innovations in general product design and materials so items are easier to recycle.

Chris Grantham from the London branch of the global design consultancy Ideo, agreed with the findings, saying that Pringles and Lucozade Sport (and brands with similar packaging) were singled out by the industry as almost impossible to recycle.

He also applauded other easily recyclable products such as milk bottles, where suppliers worked together to produce all plastic milk bottles and caps using the same plastic.

Owners of both Pringles and Lucozade responded with the packs’ food waste saving and carbons emissions credentials.

Kelloggs, the owner of Pringles, said there was an environmental advantage to its design.

“All parts of a Pringles can act as a barrier to keep [the crisps] fresh. That means a longer shelf life, which minimises food waste,” a spokesman said.

Lucozade said it was reducing carbon emissions, adding: “We recognise our responsibility to limit our impact on the environment and welcome any technological breakthroughs that support this ambition.”

UK fails to recycle almost 50% of its plastic bottles

UK fails to recycle almost 50% of its plastic bottles.

UK fails to recycle almost 50% of its plastic bottlesUK fails to recycle almost 50% of its plastic bottles each year the average UK household uses 480 plastic bottles , but only recycles 270 of them – meaning nearly half (44%) are not put in the recycling.

This means that nationally, of the over 35 million plastic bottles being used every day in the UK, nearly 16 million plastic bottles aren’t being put out for recycling. New data from Recycle Now reveals the number of plastic bottles evading recycling could reach 29 billion over the four years up to the end of 2020.

If a year’s worth of the UK’s unrecycled plastic bottles were placed end to end, they’d reach around the world 31 times, covering  just over 780,000 miles.

Alice Harlock, from Recycle Now said: “The number of plastic bottles not being recycled is staggering and will increase further if we don’t take action.  Householders are often unsure if items are recyclable especially from the bathroom, bedroom and living room. An easy way to tell is, if an item is plastic and bottle shaped its recyclable.”

Commonly used items people might not know are recyclable include: empty bleach; shampoo; conditioner; bathroom cleaners and hand soap dispenser bottles.

In a bid to encourage people into taking action to recycle more plastic bottles, Recycle Now is calling on the UK public to open their eyes to all potential recycling opportunities in the home.

Harlock added: “We need to challenge ourselves when it comes to what we could be recycling. Every plastic bottle counts. We’re asking people to think more about what they can recycle every time they go to put something in the waste bin. If you’re having a shower and using up the last of the shampoo – don’t just think replace, think Recycle. When you run out of your favourite moisturiser in the morning – don’t just think replace, think Recycle.  If you’re not sure whether you can recycle plastic bottles at home check out our Recycling Locator.”

How to recycle plastic:

Nearly all local authorities in the UK collect recycling from the home, and recycling plastic bottles has never been easier.  To ensure consumers recycle at home, Recycle Now recommends:

  • Making sure plastic bottles are empty
  • Rinsing the bottles
  • Squashing the bottles to save space in the recycling bin (then put the lids back on)
  • If you’re on the go; pop your plastic bottle in a bag and recycle it when you get home rather than throwing it in a waste bin

TOP THREE PLASTIC RECYCLING MYTHS DEBUNKED

Keep your plastic lids 

Plastic bottles with plastic lids – water bottles, milk bottles, shampoo and bleach bottles can be squashed to save space in your recycling bin, and the lids can be put back on for recycling too.

What about bleach?

Some people assume bleach and kitchen cleaner bottles can’t be recycled because of their contents – but it’s easier than you think to safely recycle them. Ensure the bottle is empty and leave the lid on.

What’s the point of recycling plastics?

Using recycled materials in the manufacturing process uses considerably less energy than required for producing new products from scratch – 75% less in fact, meaning the impact on the environment is lowered.