Biffa has announced that, through a five-year partnership, it has helped homeware retailer, Dunelm, divert over 90% of its waste from landfill sites.
Throughout a “close and long-standing relationship”, Biffa has been assisting Dunelm to boost its waste recycling efforts, as well as helping it to reduce the amount of waste being diverted to landfill sites.
Over the past year, Dunelm has recycled 250,000 plastic milk bottles, 120,000 PET bottles, 40 tonnes of paper and 7,000 tonnes of cardboard and poly film, as well as 70 tonnes of electrical waste, which was recycled through a WEE compliant scheme.
Since the partnership began five years ago, over 80% of waste produced by the retailer is now recycled, as Biffa provide general waste collections across their store support centre, manufacturing sites and distribution centres, as well as over 160 Dunelm stores across the UK.
“With the help of this long-standing partnership, we are determined to reach our target goals of zero waste being directed to landfill and an 85% recycling rate.”
Following a number of detailed waste audits, some bespoke initiatives were put in place to help improve environmentally friendly waste management practice as Dunelm, such as awareness campaigns aimed across the retailer’s 9,000 employees and a “paperless office initiative” – which has reduced waste arising from stores by 50%.
Dunelm has also replaced the glass bottles previously used in its on-site Pausa coffee shops with a “lighter and more sustainable PET alternative”, Biffa says.
In May this year, Biffa also launched a TEP compliant dry, mixed recycling wheelie bin service to all of Dunelm’s stores across the UK, allowing for more materials to be properly disposed of.
Claire O’Brien, Environment & Sustainability Manager at Dunelm, said: “We are committed to minimising our impact on the environment and, thanks to Biffa, have been able to develop strategies that minimise our carbon footprint and maximise our recycling.
“With the help of this long-standing partnership, we are determined to reach our target goals of zero waste being directed to landfill and an 85% recycling rate.”
David Robinson, Account Manager at Biffa, said: “The knowledge gained through our five-year relationship with Dunelm means that Biffa have been able to devise a bespoke, compliant solution tailored to their needs and achieve the best results for them.
“Through the initiative we have put in place, we have helped Dunelm achieve a direct recycling rate of 81%, which increases to 90% after further offsite sorting and a 92% landfill diversion rate. We plan to continue our best efforts to assist Dunelm reach their environmental targets.”
