Aldi is set to become the first supermarket member of the Podback recycling scheme, which helps customers to recycle their used coffee, tea and hot chocolate pods.
As part of its membership, Podback says the supermarket will introduce its own-label pods into the Podback scheme in an “industry first”, while also helping to promote the free recycling service to shoppers in over 980 stores.
From early next year, Aldi customers will be able to visit the Podback website to either order recycling bags, which can be filled and taken to one of 6,500 Collect+ drop-off points, or register for kerbside collections if they live in a participating local authority area.
Podback launched last year and describes itself as the first coffee pod recycling service of its kind in the UK. It was set up by Nestle and Jacobs Douwe Egberts UK and membership has since grown to include 16 brands from across the coffee sector.
It’s important to us that we help customers do the right thing once our hot drink pods have been used.
Podback says that pods recycled through the scheme are reprocessed within the UK. Recycled aluminium pods are used in the manufacture of beverage cans and car components, and plastic coffee pods into items such as furniture, industrial packaging and building products.
The used coffee grounds also go through anaerobic digestion to produce a combination of biogas and soil improver.
Podback says that Aldi is one of the market leaders in own-label coffee pods, and also sells branded products as Specialbuys. By using the Podback service, customers could help to recycle up to 268 tonnes of plastic and 20 tonnes of aluminium Aldi own-label coffee pods each year, Podback says.
Richard Gorman, Plastics and Packaging Director at Aldi, said: “We’re pleased to be joining Podback on this journey – especially as the first supermarket member.
“It’s important to us that we help customers do the right thing once our hot drink pods have been used, and we look forward to seeing how our partnership with Podback progresses.”
