UK Parliament goes green: Ditches plastic for compostable alternatives 

21 Sep 2018 --- UK Parliament has introduced compostable products to replace existing, single-use plastic items. The plant-based, compostable range will be supplied by Vegware and shall include certified compostable cutlery, coffee cups and lids, soup containers, takeaway food containers, salad boxes and drinking straws.

As part of this sustainable switch, Parliament will be introducing new waste bins to capture the used compostable disposables, which will then be sent to an in-vessel composting facility. The used Vegware will first be shredded, and the composting process will start by naturally occurring micro-organisms already in the waste. The process results in high-quality compost being produced that is fit for any garden. Food waste is already captured separately and sent to an anaerobic digestion facility to produce biofertilizer and methane gas for energy generation.

Compostable products are just one of several measures announced earlier this year at Parliament with the ambitious aim of eliminating single-use avoidable plastics by 2019. The first phase of the plan saw the introduction of re-usable coffee cups in June this year, with more than a thousand cups already sold to MPs, Peers, visitors, and staff working in Parliament. The roll-out of the new range in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords will be complete by October and is expected to result in a dramatic reduction in single-use plastics in Parliament.

“We have spent six years building close relationships with the waste sector, and helping Parliament set up composting is a huge source of pride. Many large institutions around the UK are already using this system, but this high-profile accolade certainly brings composting into the spotlight. Regular collections to commercial composting are available in many UK regions, and we are seeing huge interest from universities, tourism sites and large offices, as well as small independent cafes,” Eilidh Brunton, Group Recycling Consultant at Vegware, tells PackagingInsights.

From October 2018, Parliament will stop selling bottled water, immediately removing 120,000 plastic bottles from circulation annually. Plastic condiment sachets have also been identified as unnecessary and will be replaced with a sustainable alternative.

“I am delighted to see significant progress being made in tackling single use avoidable plastics in Parliament. The measures we are introducing are ambitious and wide-ranging, covering not just coffee cups but an array of items from plastic bottles, our new compostable products, to condiment sachets and stationery. Our aim is to remove, as far as possible, disposable plastic items from the Parliamentary Estate. Our challenging targets reflect Parliament’s commitment to leading the way in environmental sustainability,” says Sir Paul Beresford MP, Chair of the Commons Administration Committee – which recommended the proposal for the House of Commons.

“There’s a major opportunity for change in UK recycling right now. Whilst cup recycling schemes are making great strides, compostables are the only practical solution for the full range of food-contaminated disposables. The more businesses that go compostable, the faster we can set up more composting routes and achieve this much-needed change,” concludes Brunton.