26 February 2020
Biffa, the UK’s leading sustainable waste management company, has won a contract with Müller UK, the pioneering dairy company, to supply food grade recycled High-Density Polyethylene (rHDPE) plastic to be used in all its milk bottles.
With a focus on sustainable innovation, the contract, signed in November will see Biffa’s Polymers division help Müller UK achieve levels of rHDPE inclusion in its milk bottles exceed the industry norm and the targets set by the UK’s Dairy Roadmap[1]. Biffa initially began working with Müller UK in 2016.
Biffa has developed industry-leading technologies to improve the washing and extrusion process for plastics continuously over the years, enabling Müller UK to use up to 40% of recycled plastic in their bottles. The Roadmap had set an ambitious target to achieve 30% rHDPE inclusion by 2015, a feat that was achieved by Biffa in 2014 with 31% recycled material. Recycling plastic provides a sustainable source of raw materials to the dairy industry, greatly reduces the CO2 impact on the environment as it consumes less energy compared to the production of virgin plastic and also minimises the amount of plastic being sent to the UK’s landfill sites.
Commenting, Chris Hanlon, Commercial Manager at Biffa Polymers said: “We are delighted to help Müller UK improve its usage of high-quality food grade recycled plastic. We are a trusted partner for dairy manufacturers and are committed to supporting them achieve their sustainability targets with innovative, industry leading technologies.”
The rHDPE plastic will be created at Biffa’s Redcar facility, the world’s first commercially available rHDPE food grade production plant built in 2008. Against a backdrop of greater consumer demand for recycled plastic and the company’s own commitment to invest in greater recycling infrastructure in the UK, Biffa is also opening its first rPET plastic bottle recycling facility in Seaham in January, with an expected capacity to process 57,000 tonnes.
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NOTES TO EDITORS
- 80% of milk bottles in circulation in the UK contain Biffa recycled plastics
- On average 50 million milk bottles are produced using plastic from Biffa Polymers every week
About Biffa
Biffa is the UK's leading sustainable waste management business. We have over 8,000 employees working across more than 200 sites to change the way people think about waste. We operate across the waste management value chain, including the collection, treatment, processing and disposal of waste, as well as the production and sale of recovered commodities such as energy, paper, glass, metals and plastic. We are first choice for customers, with our national customer base including local authorities, large corporates and SMEs, and purchasers of end-product commodities and energy. We are structured in to two divisions: Collections and Resources & Energy. In FY19, the Group's total revenue was £1,091.2m and its Underlying EBITDA was £150.7m. Biffa has been listed on the London Stock Exchange since in October 2016 under the ticker "BIFF".
[1] Launched in 2008, the UK’s Dairy Roadmap defines targets and produces regular reports on progress that the industry - including farmers, retailers, dairy manufacturers, government and industry partners - is making on environmental matters.
