West Midlands firm is working with catering giants Nisbets to help the firm eradicate rubbish by the end of the year.
Worcester-based Waste Efficiency is helping Nisbets follow in the footsteps of Marks Spencer, which recently promised to get down to a zero-landfill target.
But while M&S has given itself a finishing date of 2012 to fulfil its green ambitions, Waste Efficiency said it would be hitting its target at Nisbets by the end of the year.
The company has sent consultant Chris Wren to Nisbets’ headquarters near Bristol, where he said he had been spending much of his time going through the bins.
“To truly analyse waste, there’s no escaping the fact you have to get your hands dirty,” he said. “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. Sometimes this meant that employees have a number of different bins and recycling units to hand. Segregating waste is essential for recycling.”
Waste Efficiency persuaded the firm to get tough with suppliers who were using too much packaging. They also put in place specific recycling schemes for cardboard, polythene, wooden pallets and ceramics.
Nisbets managing director Paul McMahon said: “It was evident that our workforce embraced the environmental work we were doing, and zero-landfill is a target that everyone can get involved in.”
His company has grown substantially since it was established 25 years ago and now has a turnover of £104 million, employing 636 people in the UK alone.
It generates considerable waste, mainly from packaging, as products arrive in their distribution warehouse from across the globe.
Peter Clutterbuck, operations director at 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.”
