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Premier Foods has committed to sending zero waste to landfill by 2015.

Waste Management

The continued disposal of waste to landfill is not sustainable. In the UK landfill capacity is being depleted rapidly; the disposal of biodegradable waste to landfill results in the production of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.

Our Issue

In the UK, 57 million tonnes of waste, including industrial waste, are being sent for disposal to landfill sites each year. It is estimated that there is only 650 million cubic metres of capacity available - three times the volume of Lake Windermere. By 2018, all available landfill capacity in the UK will have been completely filled.

Our Response

Premier Foods is committed to sending zero waste to landfill by 2015. We are actively seeking to eliminate waste from all areas of operation and are working in conjunction with waste management service providers to identify further opportunities to divert waste from landfill.

Outcome

In 2009, we set up a Group waste management steering committee, with the objective of developing an aligned approach to reduce dependence on landfill, and ultimately to send zero waste to landfill. We are achieving this by improving communication, sharing best practices, and facilitating engagement across each of our divisional businesses.

During 2010, a number of our sites have already achieved “zero waste to landfill”.

Performance to Date

In 2010, Premier Foods reduced waste to landfill by a further 9,600 tonnes from 19,800 tonnes to 10,200 tonnes, representing a 48% year on year reduction of waste sent to landfill against an ambitious target of 30%. This reduction has been achieved through close partnerships with specialist suppliers in a combination of site-based  waste reduction initiatives and improved waste segregation at source, which has led to an increase in the number and variety of materials sent for recycling and recovery.

95.8% of all waste produced during 2010 was sent for recycling.

In 2011, we set a target to divert a further 20% or 2,000 metric tonnes of waste sent to landfill, which will bring Premier Foods closer still to the goal of zero dependence on landfill by 2015. It’s a fact that current UK recycling is estimated to save more than 18 million tonnes of CO2 a year — the equivalent to taking 5 million cars off the road (source: WRAP Website 2010)