Biffa and Esterform strike multi-million-pound recycled PET deal for food-grade bottles
24 Jan 2022 --- Biffa has signed a multi-million-pound a year partnership with Esterform Packaging, one of the UK’s leading bottle manufacturers. The independent producer of plastic bottles for carbonated drinks, alcohol, squash and cooking oil will use 6,000 metric tons of recycled plastic supplied by Biffa at its factories in Leeds and Worcestershire every year.
The recycled PET used by Esterform is processed at Biffa’s Seaham facility in County Durham, one of the world’s most advanced plastic recycling facilities, capable of recycling more than two billion bottles a year.
“We’re delighted to be working alongside Esterform, who share our passion for creating a ‘circular economy’ – a system where materials are recycled for as long as possible,” comments Chris Hanlon, Biffa’s commercial director for polymers.
“We look forward to a long and successful partnership as we continue to work with them to grow the recycled content of their PET bottles.”
From April, packaging producers in the UK will be required to use 30% recycled plastic in their products, as stipulated by the UK Plastic Packaging Tax.
Securing valuable supply
The announcement comes as the UK plastics industry contends with COVID-19 worker shortages, Brexit disruptions and polymer and energy price surges.
“Biffa’s recycled plastic is a great product, so we’re delighted to have secured this deal with them,” says Mark Tyne, Esterform’s managing director.
Biffa feeds its various recycling plants from household and business collections.
“PET is a very robust, flexible material that we use to produce containers that are light, resealable, safe and strong, and which can be recycled many times to make more new bottles in the future.”
The Esterform deal with Esterform was signed after the plastic recycled at Biffa’s state-of-the-art plant in Seaham was given food-grade status by the European Food Safety Authority.
Extending plastics recycling
The deal also builds on Biffa’s existing capabilities in plastics recycling, including its plant in Redcar, Teesside, where HDPE plastic milk bottles are recycled back into food-grade HDPE. The company says 85% of milk bottles sold in the UK now contain its recycled plastics.
Meanwhile, Biffa’s plant in Washington, Sunderland, recycles 70 metric tons of plastic daily, including polypropylene margarine tubs, detergent bottles and microwave food trays, processed into flakes to be turned into anything from new garden furniture to drainpipes. The plant also recycles HDPE bottles.
All Biffa’s sites capitalize on access to plastic from households and businesses through its collections and sorting activities.
According to Innova Market Insights, 26% of UK consumers believe waste management companies are crucial to solving the global plastic pollution crisis.
By Joshua Poole
