Nestle, Mars and Mondelez Join Industry Initiative to Spur Flexible Plastic Recycling

The ultimate aim is to make flexible plastic recycling a financially sustainable system in the UK.

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Leading consumer brands Nestle, Mars UK and Mondelez have become part of an industry initiative for £1 million fund, aimed at boosting plastic packaging recycling. The Flexible Plastic Fund is led by Ecosurety and Hubbub and is also supported by other top food brands including PepsiCo and Unilever.

The fund intends to provide significant boost to flexible plastic recycling, by ensuring stable value for the material. This will lead to notable reduction in plastic pollution, in addition to inviting more investment in recycling infrastructure and creating more jobs. The ultimate aim is to make flexible plastic recycling a financially sustainable system in the UK.

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Major supermarket chains such as Sainsbury’s and Waitrose have already extended support to the initiative by setting up flexible plastic collection points in selected stores across the UK. This has made recycling of the material increasingly accessible to consumers. Several other retailers are also expected to soon join the campaign.

As per rough estimates, flexible plastic packaging accounted for 22% of the total UK consumer plastic packaging in 2019. However, only 6% of the material was recycled during the year.

A recent survey had indicated strong willingness from consumers to recycle their flexible packaging.

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