The British Plastics Federation (BPF) has endorsed the Paper Cup Manifesto, which aims to boost the recovery and recycling of paper cups.
The manifesto was published in June by the Paper Cup Recovery & Recycling Group and the Foodservice Packaging Association. The BPF is one of nearly 50 organisations who have backed the initiative.
These include the British Retail Consortium, Caffe Nero Costa/ Whitbread Group, the Foodservice Packaging Association, Greggs, Marks and Spencer, McDonald's Restaurants, Nestlé, the Packaging Federation, Pret a Manger, Starbucks, Veolia and the Waitrose/John Lewis Partnership.
It aims that by 2020 “the greater majority of the UK population will have access to information, schemes and facilities that enable used paper cups to be sustainably recovered and recycled. The paper cup supply chain agrees to work together to ensure paper cups are designed, used, disposed of and collected to maximise the opportunities for recycling by further investment and funding of recycling, disposal and collection projects.”
BPF director general Philip Law, told PRW: “The British Plastics Federation supports initiatives that aim to improve recycling infrastructure in the UK. It encourages the development and specification of products that are optimally designed for recycling and resource efficiency.
“Paper cups have a polyethylene plastic (PE) coating in order to comply with strict regulations for food contact packaging and are completely hygienic and safe for the customer to use. However, in order for them to be recycled, the PE coating must be separated from the paper fibre.
“Because paper cups contain a necessary PE coating, the BPF is a signatory of the Paper Cup Manifesto and is pleased to see how the industry is showing real commitment to collaborating to find solutions to increase the recovery and recycling rates of paper cups.”