A new set of ambitious targets to drive further environmental and sustainability progress across the UK dairy processing sector has been unveiled by The Dairy Roadmap. The new targets, presented by The Dairy Roadmap’s Processor Working Group, focus on three critical areas: climate change and energy, water and plastics and packaging.

They build on the significant progress already achieved by the industry since The Dairy Roadmap was established in 2008:

• >30% less energy is required to process each tonne of milk
• ~65% of UK milk is within Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) aligned supply chains (05 in 2008)
• >50% less water is required to process each tonne of milk
• >60% reduction in packaging per tonne of milk
• Plastic milk bottles contain >30% recycled materials (was 0% in 2008)
• > 90% of processor waste is recovered or recycled (was 62% in 2008)
• Less than 2% of waste ends up in landfill (was 24% in 2008)
• Consistently low food waste, with an average 1.3% of inputs lost as waste.

Dr Emma Gregson, Dairy Roadmap Secretariat and environment manager at Dairy UK, says, “The UK dairy sector is in a strong position thanks to pre-competitive collaboration and an emphasis on continuous improvement.

“The next phase is about continuing to set challenging but realistic targets, streamlining data collection to track progress and sharing what works so the whole sector can move forward together.”

The Dairy Roadmap’s ambition is to eliminate unnecessary single-use plastic, maximise recycled content and improve recyclability, while minimising carbon impact.

The new targets are: all packaging to be recyclable where possible and economically viable, 100% of paper and card to be FSC certified or equivalent and, remove dyed plastic bottle caps from consumer packaging by 2030. The industry is also considering future targets for recycled content of packaging, aligned with initiatives such as the WRAP Food & Drink Pact.

Packaging decisions will be guided by the waste hierarchy, prioritising prevention and reuse, followed by recycling, recovery and disposal. The carbon footprint of packaging will increasingly be considered in product design and the necessity of single use plastics regularly assessed.

The Dairy Roadmap’s long-term climate ambition is to limit global warming to 1.5°C and achieve zero contribution from the dairy sector towards global warming by 2050. New processor targets will increase measurement, transparency and action on emissions. All processors are to estimate and report their Scope 1 and 2 emissions, while SMEs should undertake the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and present this to their boards by the end of 2026. Additionally, all processors are to set SBTi-approved Scope 1 and 2 targets by the end of 2027, with large organisations to set SBTi-approved Scope 3 targets, including Forest, Land, and Agriculture (FLAG) targets, by the end of 2027, while there is continued sharing of best practice across the sector. These targets will continue to evolve alongside policy and international developments.

The Dairy Roadmap’s end goal for water is for no serious pollution incidents, compliance with legislation, sustainable water use and the best possible treatment and use of wastewater including reuse where possible.

The new targets are for all processors measure water usage within their own operations, undertake a water risk assessment that will help to develop a local action plan by the end of 2026, and to develop an action plan to reduce water risk by the end of 2027.

The sector will also focus on reducing water usage and reliance on mains water through improved education, efficiency, treatment and reuse, while engaging with catchment level projects where appropriate.

To enable consistent tracking of progress against these new targets, a data collection template has been developed by The Dairy Roadmap’s Processor Working Group. Guidance on SBTi and water targets is also being developed, while discussions continue on recycled content within packaging. The working group will continually review progress and develop potential new targets in response to industry, policy and legislative developments, it says.