Stakeholder briefing

With a company mantra "let's do it", it’s no surprise that the UK’s biggest DIY retailer has a can-do approach to sustainability. Although this highly competitive sector has come under increasing pressure during the housing market downturn, B&Q has continued its efforts to promote energy saving and sustainable sourcing to its staff and customers.

Last year the company signed up to WRAP’s Home Improvement Sector Commitment in which the sector agreed to work together for the first time to cut down on waste. The signatories (currently comprising B&Q, Homebase, Argos, Wickes, Focus DIY, Henkel and Crown Paints) agreed to reduce own label packaging use by 15% and reduce waste to landfill by 50% by the end of 2012, against a 2007 baseline. They also pledged to help consumers recycle more.

For B&Q, the commitment is a continuation of its sustainability policies which started in the 1990s with sustainably sourced timber. In the past year the company has reduced absolute carbon emissions by 9% and has signed up to the 10:10 Commitment to take things further in the year ahead.
 
Action on the use of lighting, transport and packaging will be key to meeting targets for both these Commitments. B&Q is also finding that, amid the tough economic realities of a highly competitive UK DIY market, resource efficiency in these areas can also bring demonstrable financial benefits.

Leading the way is its ground-breaking innovation with reusable packaging for kitchen worktops. B&Q’s original aim was to develop a solution which would prevent damage, be more convenient for customers and less costly for the business. It worked with WRAP to trial a pack that could be used to deliver worktops to customers’ homes, returned to the warehouse and used again – the Carrierpac. The trial proved the concept worked and Carrierpacs have since been adopted for full national use and have saved over £1 million a year on packaging costs, along with a massive reduction of 1,200 tonnes of cardboard no longer being generated and reaching the waste stream each year.  In addition, worktop damage has been significantly reduced from around 6%, negating the need for the retailer to dispose of more than 900 tonnes of damaged worktops every year. Since its launch the Carrierpac has won two Starpack awards and some have been used more than 80 times, with average reuse now running at over 40 trips.

As a result of the success of the worktop trial, B&Q is now trialling a similar reusable pack for long and easily damaged items such as pelmets, cornice and plinths, and the boards which go on the bottom of kitchen units.

Jonathan Couper, Packaging Design Manager at B&Q, believes that such ideas could be introduced in further areas. He says: "The Carrierpac has given us the confidence to look at a total business solution." He explains that, although there might be a slight price implication in, for example, asking a supplier to pack goods in cardboard rather than polystyrene, B&Q was now looking along the chain to see how this might cut disposal costs and make packaging more robust so reducing stock loss and saving money overall.

He adds: "Clearly we have a big opportunity in kitchens where we have a lot of UK manufacture and goods are going from the manufacturer to the distribution centre to the customer and don’t go outside our supply chain at any point."

Where goods are sourced from Far East suppliers who source packaging themselves, the job is more difficult. Couper says this is where co-operative work through the Home Improvement Sector Commitment can come into play. He says: "There is a big opportunity within our sector to see what we can do together. We need more visibility on second tier suppliers and that is a big challenge."

Home Retail Group’s recent adoption of reusable packaging for the delivery of upholstered furniture for Argos and Homebase from suppliers in China as well as the UK shows the possibilities in this area. With those potential business and environmental benefits to realise across the market, it is not all about Do It Yourself in the home improvement sector.

The UK has set itself some tough targets on sustainability. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 is a challenging goal and to reach it both producers and consumers will need to change their thinking and practice.

Research carried out for WRAP has found that the biggest impact on the UK’s sustainability will come from changing patterns of consumption. Businesses are constantly making improvements in manufacturing efficiency but, from a national level, these savings are being eliminated by rising consumption of goods. As consumption rises, imported emissions are likely to account for over 45% of the UK total greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Tackling that issue could mean some big changes, but also some major opportunities. Research by Tim Cooper of Sheffield University estimated that nearly half of electrical goods and a third of clothing are disposed of while still in working condition. At the moment this is partly driven by businesses models which are based around volume sales, encouraging shoppers to bin goods and move on.

However, research suggests that if we in the UK used everyday domestic goods such as clothes, crockery, tools and televisions, for their full life cycle we could save £47 billion a year, or over £1,800 per household per year. The opportunity exists for business to share this saving, and potentially improve profitability, by exploiting a variety of new business models.

So how can business make more profit out of selling less?

It may mean persuading shoppers to invest more cash in more durable goods – what the fashion industry calls 'investment shopping'. Alternatively it could mean enlarging the market in unwanted, but workable, goods. Businesses such as Ebay and traditional charity shops are already part of life in the UK but further potential exists and WRAP is carrying out research into the environmental benefits of reuse business models. Look out for the results later this year.

There are some sectors where WRAP believes a shift towards a hire rather than a sales culture will be the logical next step towards a sustainable future. Shifting a fifth of household spending from purchasing to renting could cut carbon emissions by about 2%, or 13 million tonnes of CO₂ a year, by lowering the rate of manufacturing and consumption of raw materials.

Keith James, WRAP’s Environmental Policy Manager, says: "There can be a greater move from goods to services in niche and high-end products. All items which are used less frequently, or are fashion driven, could make this change. What we want is for businesses to make their goods work harder for them and make more profit per unit."

WRAP's research identified five categories of goods suitable for renting: high-end clothing; glassware and tableware; tools and equipment for house and garden; vehicles; and telephone, audio and recreational equipment.

Companies are already using the hire model in most of these fields. Car clubs such as Zipcar, Streetcar and Hertz, which allow users to hire cars parked near their homes at short notice, are currently growing fast and supplementing traditional car hire while tool hire companies such as HSS and clothing hire companies such as FashionHire.co.uk and Cinderella-Me.co.uk are not new. WRAP believes these markets could expand. For example hiring could replace 10% of the clothing retail market within ten years, 20% of the market for tools in the same time period and up to 90% by 2050. On vehicles, early research suggests that renting could account for 20% of the market by 2020 and 50-90% by 2050.

Further research led by consultancy Ceres Logistics is now examining the economic viability of the hire model for markets including power tools, vehicles and furniture in a bid to promote this financial model to business. However, work already carried out by WRAP suggests that, although the consequences for individual businesses could vary widely, such changes could be made with no significant net impact on the UK’s GDP.

Making more profit whilst selling less is a simple idea (isn’t that what capitalism is about?) but simple ideas could be the start of something sustainable.

With increasing pressure on resources, from everyday fresh water to rare metals and minerals, clever design with the aim of minimising materials is an economic, as well as environmental, imperative.

That's why WRAP is working with a variety of industries to promote sustainable design – whether that be optimising the use of precious resources or maximising opportunities to recover, reuse and recycle materials once a product has reached the end of its working life.

In the retail sector, Asda is leading a five-month trial of a reusable packaging scheme.  The set-up, supported by WRAP and partners Asda, eziserv, McBride and Unilever, enables shoppers to purchase concentrated fabric conditioner in reusable pouches that can be refilled up to 10 times at automated machines. Shoppers save 40p per refill and the system has the potential to cut the weight and volume of plastic used for the fabric conditioner by 96%. The trial is being monitored by an industry panel including Asda’s major grocery rivals as well as suppliers including P&G and Reckitt Benckiser, and funding partners. It’s hoped that if the trial is a success, refillable technologies could be developed for a variety of household cleaning products. A similar system is already being trialled for paint.

WRAP is also working with manufacturers to make products themselves more sustainable. Take the new Sony Vaio laptop - nearly 80% of all plastic parts, including the top and bottom covers and palm rest are made from recycled plastic. Sustainability can also be about longevity. A washing machine, developed by a British company called ISE and already being sold, is designed to last 8,000 washing cycles, or almost 22 years based on one wash per day.

Finally, in the construction sector WRAP has produced a guide: Achieving effective waste minimisation through design to promote sustainability from the initial stages of a project. There are many techniques that can reduce waste such as the use of ‘pods’, standard units which can be built off site, which research shows can reduce the amount of waste generated by 50%.

Zero Waste Scotland announced
The Scottish Government has announced the creation of a new single delivery programme called Zero Waste Scotland, which will improve advice and support on waste and resource efficiency to businesses and individuals.

The new programme, led by WRAP’s Director for Scotland, Iain Gulland, will integrate the activities of current programmes: WRAP Scotland, Waste Aware Scotland, Remade Scotland, Envirowise Scotland, NISP and the Community Recycling Network for Scotland.  Zero Waste Scotland’s aims will be aligned with the Scottish Government’s Zero Waste Plan which is to be published later in the year.  WRAP is delighted to be asked to develop the new single programme and we will keep you updated as things progress.

Capital grant awarded to Greenstar
Recycling company WES Greenstar is to add 20,000 tonnes per year of reprocessing capacity for non-bottle household plastic packaging such as margarine tubs, yoghurt pots and meat trays, after winning just under £1.2 million in funding through WRAP’s 2009 capital grant competition.

The facility, which will be added to Greenstar’s existing plant in Redcar, North Yorkshire, will begin processing natural and mixed colour polypropylene, PE and PET in addition to PVC and PS in 2011, reaching full capacity by 2013. The materials will be sourced from domestic recycling collections in the surrounding regions. The recycled plastic will be primarily sold for use in higher value industrial applications.

WRAP wins funding for London communications
WRAP has won £5 million in funding from the London Waste & Recycling Board to support a centrally co-ordinated communications programme on recycling, reuse and waste reduction throughout London.

The three year programme for Recycle for London will ensure London residents receive a consistent message about reducing, recycling and reusing household waste. Recycle for London and WRAP will also be working with grass roots partners to address specific local needs around the capital.

WRAP conferences a resounding success
The important role of resource efficiency was highlighted at the first ever WRAP national conferences for Wales and Northern Ireland.

More than 100 business leaders and environmental experts from Wales attended WRAP Cymru’s conference at the Swalec Stadium in Cardiff on 20 January. In support of WRAP's work, Jane Davidson AM, Minister for the Environment, Sustainability and Housing told the meeting that a commitment to a low waste, low carbon economy was the key to Wales’ economic recovery. Waste typically costs Welsh businesses 4% of turnover and the community could save an estimated £375 million through resource efficiency.

Northern Ireland’s Conference, held in December, heard that the country is well placed to become the home of environmental innovation. Professor Sue Christie, Director of Northern Ireland Environment Link, said the country’s size meant it was ideal to pilot programmes which could be rolled out to the rest of the UK. The conference heard that change was needed in recycling, reuse and prevention and this presented a huge opportunity for Northern Ireland. Environment Minister Edwin Poots MLA recognised the importance of WRAP’s work in this area.

Click here to watch the debate from London's conference.

WRAP to speak at base
Liz Goodwin will speak at this important new event which addresses sustainability in business.

Business and a Sustainable Environment (base), takes place on 16 and 17 March in London. The event will provide practical, solutions-based information for business by bringing together a high profile team of business leaders, politicians and commentators. To find out more visit www.baseshow.co.uk. To receive a 20% discount on the normal ticket price enter basewrap in the discount code box when you book.

Harnessing entrepreneurial spirit to build new markets is going to be key to Britain’s efforts to pull itself out of the gloom.

A great example is WES Greenstar. With WRAP’s help, the company plans to add 20,000 tonnes of annual reprocessing capacity for non-bottle household plastic packaging. The facility will be able to turn margarine tubs, yoghurt pots and meat trays into reusable materials mainly for industrial applications.

It’s an important link in the creation of a virtuous loop for mixed plastics which WRAP has been working hard to create. Our vision is that by 2020, 500,000 tonnes of non-bottle domestic mixed plastics will be recycled a year, a massive leap from the approximately 20,000 tonnes reprocessed now.

The UK currently recycles or recovers just under a fifth of all plastic consumed. In the past five years, the collection and reprocessing of plastic bottles has helped significantly improve things. We initially focused on bottles because they are relatively easy to separate from household waste and reprocess into high value materials. Our ability to work with all partners in the supply, distribution and disposal loop helped raise the amount of plastic bottles recycled from 18,000 tonnes, or less than 5% of the total used in the UK in 2001 to 39%, or 216,000 tonnes last year. That shows how quickly change can come with the right action and incentives.

Until recently it was thought that separating out the many other types of plastic which end up in household bins would be uneconomical and so costly in terms of resources that it would not make environmental sense.

Research and industrial trials backed by WRAP discovered this was not the case. Now Greenstar will be taking the process to a commercial scale. We hope that will help kick start the next phase of change and encourage more local authorities to collect a broader variety of plastics. There are still challenges to overcome, including finding a partner to process plastic films such as bread bags and food wrap. WRAP will be working with all parts of the market to take things forward.

What support can WRAP offer to businesses that collect waste cardboard, paper, plastics and glass from local businesses for recycling?

WRAP has produced a good practice guide for recycling service providers that collect waste from SMEs for recycling. The guide provides practical advice and information on how best to develop and provide recycling services to SMEs including how to make the service sustainable and advice on sales and marketing. You can request a printed guide or download it direct from the website.

You can also promote your service through our online directory of recycling service providers.

Resources are also available for businesses that wish to implement a recycling scheme and encourage potential customers to start recycling at work. Click here to access this guidance material.