Waste firm leading way to target of zero landfill

8:50am Friday 8th August 2008

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WORCESTERSHIRE-based Waste Efficiency is working with Nisbets, the catering equipment giants, to help it meet its target of zero landfill by the end of this year.

The waste company, from Hallow, near Worcester, has installed in-house waste efficiency consultant Chris Wren at Nisbets’ headquarters at Avon-mouth, Bristol This has resulted in Jerry Beeston, Nisbets’ facilities manager, and Mr Wren spending a lot of time going through bins. “To truly analyse waste, there’s no escaping the fact you have to get your hands dirty,” said Mr Beeston. “We’ve had to look at every bin, in every part of the building. From banana skins to print cartridges, we had to know precisely what we were throwing away.”

Once the waste was analysed, the two-man zero-landfill team embarked on a tireless campaign to inform their colleagues and install alternatives to bins.

Nisbets launched in 1983 to supply catering colleges with knives, clothing and text books.

The company has grown substantially since then and now has a turnover of £104 million and employs 636 people in the UK alone, with seven outlets through Europe.

Work has been intensive to reduce landfill, and each month Nisbets get closer to its target. In March this year, the company reported that 92.6 per cent of its waste is being recycled, reduced and re-used.

Peter Clutterbuck, operations director of Waste Efficiency, said; “It’s a real pleasure to work with Nisbets.

“They are firmly committed to zero landfill, and because they are a key player in the catering supplies industry, their actions will help others to follow.

Their purchasing might is certainly ensuring that many manufacturers here and abroad are taking packaging more seriously and cutting back dramatically. It’s all good news.”