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Morrisons buy a stake in Yes Recycling Fife

MORRISONS THE FIRST SUPERMARKET TO OWN RECYCLING FACILITIES IN THE UK

Morrisons has a target of reducing its own-brand plastic packaging by 50 per cent and making all own-brand plastic packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025.

Yes Recycling Fife will be part of the team, enabling that target to be reached.

Omer Kutluoglu, co-owner of Yes Recycling, said: “This is a ground-breaking site which uses new patented plastic recycling technology, which we’ve developed over the last seven years.

“It is a blueprint for the future and will help to kick start the UK’s plastics recycling industry. It will mean we can keep plastic in our own country’s ‘circular economy’ and out of our seas and oceans.”

David Potts, CEO of Morrisons, shared: ‘We’ve all seen the terrible pictures of plastic on beautiful Indonesian and Philippine beaches. And I’ve seen first-hand how it affects our coastlines when I’ve spent time on beach cleans here in Britain.

‘It’s unacceptable. So we started looking to see if we could find an answer. And this has led to us investing in a new recycling site. We’ve all come a long way towards turning the tide on plastics. But it’s not enough. We need to turn our attention to soft plastics.’

Helen Bird, strategic technical manager in plastics at WRAP, added: “It’s very encouraging to hear of the investment made by UK Plastics Pact member Morrisons in the Yes Recycling plastic bags and wrapping recycling facility.

“While we need to reduce unnecessary plastic, when it comes to recycling, we need to make it as simple for people as possible. Packaging design needs to be improved, and we need to get collection services rolled out across the nation – from people’s homes in the future and supermarkets in the interim. But ensuring the material is remanufactured into new products or packaging is key – that is, after all the whole point of recycling.”

Our plant will take all low-grade plastics, including sweet wrappers, crisp packets, salad bags, and non PET food film. When these materials enter the site, all of the plastic material is washed and sorted. It is then broken down and turned into flakes and pellets, which can be used to make new plastic products in a ‘closed loop’. Other pellets are compressed into Ecosheets, which can be recycled again at the end of their life.

Ecosheet will be launched in Q2 of 2022 and will be available to the construction industry and industries looking to reduce their environmental impact.

The future is positive as we innovate and continue to develop a new way of approaching recycling.

For more information, contact info@yesrecycling.org