Cathedral City and TerraCycle launch UK’s first cheese packaging recycling scheme
Cathedral City has partnered with recycling expert, TerraCycle, to launch the industry’s first recycling scheme for flexible film cheese packaging, to be rolled out for the entire cheese category. The programme will encourage people to collect flexible film cheese packaging and drop it off at one of the scheme’s public access drop-off points across the UK.
This partnership is the latest step in Cathedral City’s mission to create a more sustainable future, with the ambition of launching 100% recyclable packaging by 2022.
As part of the Cheese Packaging Recycling Programme, people will be able to recycle all types of cheese film packaging, not just Cathedral City’s. How the scheme works:
- Consumers wanting to recycle their plastic can search for their nearest public access drop-off point on www.cathedralcity.co.uk
- Consumers drop off their recyclable packaging at their local collection point site
- The plastic from the collection points around the country is sent free of charge to TerraCycle by the location administrator before being sorted, aggregated and sent for processing
- The collected plastic is shredded, washed and converted into pellets or flakes
- This new, reusable raw material can then be transformed into durable products such as outdoor furniture or waste bins
- If there is no public drop-off point nearby, people can sign up to open a public collection point themselves and allow their whole community to collect the flexible film cheese packaging
Cheese film packaging is notoriously difficult to recycle due to the fact that it is made up of a number of different layers. These layers help to ensure that the cheese does not become contaminated before opening, has a good best before date and stays fresher for longer, which also helps to reduce food waste.
To tackle this issue, the Cathedral City research and development team is working on developing new packaging solutions which could be recycled in standard household recycling collections in the future, while providing the same quality, protection and safety as existing film.
Lee Willett, Marketing Director at Saputo Dairy UK, owner of Cathedral City, explained: “Without a standard recycling solution in the industry, consumers are unsure what they can recycle and where. The new partnership with TerraCycle aims to address this confusion, making it quick and easy for people to recycle their packaging at a local collection point. We’re delighted to be launching this new initiative with TerraCycle, marking an industry-first sustainable solution for everyone in the category.
“We are committed to minimising our impact on the environment while helping cheese lovers reduce their household waste. This investment is a first step in our ambitious journey to make packaging which is 100% recyclable by 2022. After all, the nation’s favourite cheese should never go to waste and neither should its packaging.”
Laure Cucuron, General Manager, TerraCycle Europe said: “TerraCycle is always looking for solutions to new waste streams, so it is truly fantastic that Cathedral City is partnering with us to make recycling cheese packaging a possibility in the UK for the first time. We are excited to work with such a forward-thinking brand which is striving to reduce its environmental impact and we are thrilled to be a part of that goal.”
To learn more about the Cheese Packaging Recycling Programme, click here.