McDonald’s and Hubbub launch £8,000 grant fund to support local UK waste recycling

14 Feb 2023 --- McDonald’s and Hubbub, an environmental organization, have launched a new #InTheLoop grant fund to boost recycling in public spaces.

The money is set aside for organizations such as local authorities, business improvement districts, shopping centers, major property owners and transport hubs. These institutions can apply for the £8,000 (US$9,731.92) in funding until March 17.

“We’re delighted to be funding this piece of work. We hope that by providing funding to roll out #InTheLoop we can have a lasting impact in the communities we serve,” says Helen McFarlane, McDonald’s senior sustainability consultant.

“Recycling on-the-go continues to be a significant challenge, with less than half of local authorities currently having on-street recycling systems,” adds co-founder of Hubbub, Gavin Ellis.

#InTheLoop of recycling
Hubbub says it will provide ongoing support based on its expertise and experience in delivering recycling campaigns.

McDonalds will give £8,000 to help organizations boost their out-of-home recycling to reduce packaging waste in landfills and incinerated. The fund will use the #InTheLoop toolkit to support two new projects to introduce or improve their recycling infrastructure. The toolkit guides local authorities on how to roll out a successful recycling on-the-go campaign to increase recycling rates and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill or incineration.

“McDonald’s has been working with Hubbub on their innovative #InTheLoop campaigns for over five years now, and we’re excited that this project builds on all the success we’ve had over the years,” continues McFarlane.

Previous trials pave the way
#InTheLoop was first trialed in Leeds, England, in 2018, with support from companies, including McDonald’s. Hubbub says #InTheLoop is the “UK’s biggest collaborative approach” to boost recycling on the go.

“Previous #InTheLoop trials have helped us define an effective approach to out-of-home recycling, so we’re delighted that additional funding from McDonald’s will enable two more organizations to trial #InTheLoop interventions in their area to help address littering, boost recycling rates and reduce waste sent to landfill or incineration,” says Ellis.

Swansea, Edinburgh, Dublin, Wimbledon, Telford & Wrekin and Lambeth have all run similar pilots. The pilots involved installing and testing a range of colorful and eye-catching bins to improve recycling rates.

The #InTheLoop toolkit, funded by the environmental compliance scheme Ecosurety, brings together “key learnings and insights” gathered from these trials and aims to act as a blueprint for the winning projects, says Hubbub.

According to the charity, over 500 bins have been rolled out, and over 2.5 million plastic and glass bottles have been collected and recycled.

Packaging waste per minute
McDonald’s produces about three metric tons of packaging waste every minute, almost two million metric tons of packaging waste a year, according to research published in SidmartinBio.

However, the company stated that as of 2021, approximately 82.7% of its primary packaging materials and 96.8% of its primary fiber packaging comes from recycled or certified sources. It aims for 100% certified, recycled or renewable materials by the end of 2025.

By Sabine Waldeck

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