is the green consumer here or long gone?

Shoppers want packaging that keeps food fresh longer, thus producing less food waste. They also want to put less packaging into landfill, according to the latest consumer research. The Bord Bia view is based upon a recent Mintel UK consumer survey entitled 'Food & Drink Packaging Trends', which shows that eco-friendly packaging has grown in importance in parallel with convenience trends such as 'easy-open' and 'smart' packaging.

Bord Bia Food & Beverage sector manager, Stephanie Moe, notes: "Food and packaging manufacturers continue to work together to introduce more environmentally-friendly packaging formats. "A wide range of products from coffee to milk are now sold in light pouches or bags, with even minced beef now being sold similarly.

"As well as the environmental benefit, these packaging developments offer savings in transport and storage costs offered by more lightweight packaging formats," Ms Moe said. The Mintel report highlighted some of the main drivers and trends impacting on food packaging in Britain. Partly driven by rising waste disposal costs, consumers in Britain are increasingly conscious of their food waste.

As a result, people are shifting their priorities when it comes to food packaging, with a strong focus on seeking packaging options that help to keep products fresher for longer, thereby minimising food waste.

In an effort to tackle food waste, consumers are seeking products of a size more appropriate to their needs, looking for variety of pack formats so they no longer have to throw out what they do not use. Another packaging trend of note is 'easy-open'. With the over-55s forecast to represent 30% of the population by 2016, packaging is starting to target this demographic, again with more suitable, generally smaller pack formats and the availability of easy-to-open jars, bottles and tubs for food.

Also increasing in popularity is the 'clear packaging' category. There is considerable evidence that consumers prefer clear packaging, with the ability to see the product clearly offering a reassurance of the product quality and allaying fears that a product may have superfluous packaging.

Consumers are also seeking out 'smart' packaging, which refers to new packaging features that go beyond changes in pack shape, colour, barcodes etc. This comprises 'active' and 'intelligent' packaging.

Ms Moe says: "Advancements in active and intelligent packaging are numerous but their penetration remains limited due to their high costs and technical issues often involved in incorporating them into the production process. Examples of this would be the use of thermo-chrome inks, used in the drinks industry to show when a product is at the correct temperature for consumption ( for example Coors beer bottles).

News from: http://www.waste-management-world.com/index/from-the-wires/wire-news-display/1616084297.html

UK - Reuse 'way forward' as resource security fears grow

Goodwin said that by pursuing opportunities for reuse, the UK could reduce its reliance on raw materials, including rare earths, by as much as 20% by 2020. WRAP estimates that around 600m tonnes of products and material enter the UK economy each year, with only around 115m tonnes being recycled. "Rare earth metals account for just 1,600 tonnes of this flow, but they are found everywhere - from vehicles, TVs, computers and ceramics, fuels, energy generation, and pharmaceuticals," Goodwin told delegates. "We are heavily dependent on these materials for so many everyday items, but recycling rates associated with these resources are generally very low, often below 1%."

WRAP has identified some 'quick win' resource efficiency strategies, covering a range of materials including copper, lithium and cobalt as well as rare earths, which could not only help reduce the UK's carbon footprint by 2020, but could also help address wider supply security issues.

Goodwin said: "Our research shows that in general, it's the strategies that extend the life of goods or reduce the consumption of electronic and electrical goods that have the greatest impact.

"The biggest 'quick win' impacts can be attribute to four approaches - lean production, waste reduction, lifetime optimisation and 'goods to services', where the number of leased products is increased and the number of outright purchases are decreased."

Goodwin also highlighted the opportunities presented by tackling the amount of WEEE in the UK. "We estimate that between now and 2020, in the UK, we'll dispose of 12m tonnes of WEEE.

She alluded to new WRAP research that shows that almost a quarter of all WEEE taken to household recycling centres has a reuse value, which could deliver £200m gross revenue each year. "This alone could make 100 tonnes of rare earth elements - almost 10% of UK demand - available again," she said.

"More than a fifth of the WEEE could be immediately sold on, or repaired and refurbished for resale, bringing financial benefits to those involved. The end result would be that we'd be a step closer to the elusive closed loop, green economy model."

Read WRAP's sheet on "Realising the Reuse Value of Household WEEE"

From Edie

UK, London - Boris reduces waste reduction targets

In his business and municipal waste strategies published in November, Boris Johnson ditched plans set out in a 2010 draft document to ask government for a national deposit system for bottles and cans. The municipal waste strategy reduced the target for waste reduction through reuse and repair from 40,000 tonnes in 2015 and 120,000 tonnes in 2031, to 20,000 and 30,000 tonnes respectively as indicated in the draft plan [pdf].

The mayor also cut his ambitions for business waste reduction following a cut in funding allocated by the London Waste and Recycling Board Infrastructure Fund. The draft strategy [pdf] aimed to divert 1.2m tonnes from landfill making 300,000 tonnes of carbon savings a year. In the final document [pdf] the target was reduced to 500,000 tonnes of landfill diversion a year and savings of 3m tonnes of carbon over the lifetime of the projects.

Labour’s environment spokesperson Murad Qureshi AM said: “This is not value for money for Londoners considering we’ve had to wait so long for these strategies to be released. I am most concerned that the Mayor is doing little to affect Londoners’ quality of life now.”

In November, Qureshi attacked the mayor’s waste strategy for failing to help the capital’s small businesses access recycling services and facilities.

The Mayor of London’s office has not responded to MRW’s requests for a comment.

News from MRW / Image from Environment Finance

World - 10 Steps To Waste Less Food This Holiday Season

A little bit for those that celebrated Thanksigiving yesterday, but still useful for the rest that are celebrating it late or for those planning christmas meals.

About one-third of all food produced for human consumption, approximately 1.3 billion tons, is lost or wasted every year, according to the UN's Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO). Consumers in developed countries are responsible for 222 million tons of this waste, or about the same quantity of food produced in all of sub-Saharan Africa. The wasted food that is not composted ends up in landfills where it produces methane emissions, a greenhouse gas with a warming effect 21 times greater than carbon dioxide.With the holiday season upon us, it is helpful to know how to avoid wasting food. Thankfully, the Worldwatch Institute offers 10 steps that will make a holiday meal less wasteful:

1. Be realistic: Cook only the amount of food that is really needed for your holiday meal. See the Love Food Hate Waste organization's "Perfect portions" planner to calculate meal sizes.



2. Plan ahead: Create a shopping list before buying the ingredients for your meal. Check out the Grocery Gadgets shopping app for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry.



3. Go small: Use smaller serving utensils and plates to encourage people to eat smaller portions, and reduce the amount of food left on plates.



4. Encourage self-serve: Let guests serve themselves so they will take the amount they can realistically eat.



5. Store leftovers safely: The USDA recommends that hot foods only be left out for no more than two hours.



6. Compost food scraps: Compost vegetable peels, egg shells and other food scraps from meal preparation.



7. Create new meals: Use the leftovers from your holiday meal to make new meals. See the Love Food Hate Waste's recipes from food scraps.



8. Donate excess: Donate canned and dried foods you didn't need for your holiday meal to food banks and shelters. See the Feeding America's Food Bank Locator.



9. Support food-recovery programs: In some cities, there are food recovery systems that will come and collect your leftovers. For instance, in New York City, City Harvest, the world's first food-rescue organization, collects about 28 million pounds of food each year.



10. Give gifts with thought: If you decide to give food, avoid highly perishable items. If you give chocolate, coffee or tea as a gift, choose fair trade certified products. Check out Global Exchange, which lists fair trade certified chocolate, coffee and tea companies.

If you know other tips for reducing food waste this holiday season, feel free to divulge them as a comment to this post. Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/ten-steps-to-waste-less-food-this-holiday-season.html#ixzz1eS97uSap

World - Humanity can and must do more with less

By 2050, humanity could devour an estimated 140 billion tons of minerals, ores, fossil fuels and biomass per year - three times its current appetite - unless the economic growth rate is "decoupled" from the rate of natural resource consumption, warns a new report from the United Nations Environment Programme.

Developed countries citizens consume an average of 16 tons of those four key resources per capita (ranging up to 40 or more tons per person in some developed countries). By comparison, the average person in India today consumes four tons per year.

With the growth of both population and prosperity, especially in developing countries, the prospect of much higher resource consumption levels is "far beyond what is likely sustainable" if realized at all given finite world resources, warns the report by UNEP's International Resource Panel.

Already the world is running out of cheap and high quality sources of some essential materials su! ch as oil, copper and gold, the supplies of which, in turn, require ever-rising volumes of fossil fuels and freshwater to produce.

Improving the rate of resource productivity ("doing more with less") faster than the economic growth rate is the notion behind "decoupling," the panel says. That goal, however, demands an urgent rethink of the links between resource use and economic prosperity, buttressed by a massive investment in technological, financial and social innovation, to at least freeze per capita consumption in wealthy countries and help developing nations follow a more sustainable path.

The trend towards urbanization may help as well, experts note, since cities allow for economies of scale and more efficient service provision. Densely populated places consume fewer resources per capita than sparsely populated ones thanks to economies in such areas as water delivery, housing, waste management and recycling, energy use and transportation, they say.

"Decoupling makes sense on all the economic, social and environmental dials," says UN Under Secretary-General Achim Steiner, UNEP's Executive Director.

USA - Hotel soaps cant be reused, but they are used again after being recycled

Unlimited access to tiny individually-wrapped soaps is one of the many perks of a hotel stay. But what happens to soaps that aren't used (or pilfered) during your visit? The answer may surprise you.

More than 2 million partially used bars of soap are discarded at North American hotels each day, according to the Global Soap Project. Even if hotel soaps haven't been used, quality control standards usually prohibit cleaning staff from reusing the same soaps for multiple guests - especially if the paper wrapping is wet or opened. So, unused and partially used soaps are often destined for the landfill.

But Hilton Worldwide is planning to change all that at its 3,750 hotels by partnering with the Global Soap Project to recycle old soaps for a cause, the company announced on Tuesday. The Atlanta-based non-profit will collect partially used soaps from Hilton and its subsidiaries, sanitize them and reprocess them into new bars - which are then distributed in developing countries.

Recycling soap eliminates a common hotel waste product and provides free sanitation options for people who are at risk of hygiene-related diseases, said Derreck Kayongo, founder of the Global Soap Project.

"When living as a refugee in Kenya, I realized soap was hard to come by, even completely nonexistent sometimes, " Kayongo remembered. "Even when available, those living on less than a dollar a day had to choose between buying food or soap. People were suffering from illness simply because they couldn't wash their hands. "

Hand washing with soap is among the most effective and inexpensive ways to prevent diarrheal diseases and pneumonia, which together are responsible for more than 3.5 million child deaths each year, the nonprofit said.

The hotel giant expects their donations to yield 1 million new four-ounce bars of soap in the partnership's first year. In addition to donating soap, Hilton is investing $1.3 million over the next three years to help expand the nonprofit's processing capabilities. The company said it hopes to help the Global Soap Project recycle the high volumes of soap generated by the sector, at zero cost to hotel properties.

The nonprofit is "thrilled" with the partnership and hopes it will empower other hotel companies to recycle their soap to support those in need, Kayongo said. Since its inception in 2009, the Global Soap Project has distributed more than 25 tons of soap in 20 countries across four continents.

London, Hackney: Take your Free Compost

Hackney’s autumn free compost give away event will take place this Saturday! We will be there offering tips and advice on how to use autumn leaves for leaf-mulching or any other composting queries you may have. We will be waiting for you at the Hackney Marshes Park Rangers Depot from 11am to 3pm this Saturday, 1st October 2011.

UK: Resourceful times: why less is more for waste

Dr Richard Swannell is director of design and waste prevention at WRAP.

It would be fair to say that most people view reducing waste to landfill as the most important issue today on waste. I don't believe this is necessarily the case. Though undoubtedly an important area, it is only a small part of the overall waste problem. Indeed, the steps to reduce waste begin long before waste arrives at landfill. For example, it would help if reducing waste was factored into the design of a given product. WRAP's new four-year business plan focuses on waste prevention and the benefit to consumers and businesses alike of considering ways to cut waste and save money.

WRAP's vision of a zero waste economy and the steps taken to achieve this has an order of priority. The most favourable option in terms of cost and environmental impact is prevention, followed by reuse, recycling, energy recovery, and finally disposal.

To get an idea of the benefits of waste prevention, it is worth considering the following with regards to water used to produce food. Earlier this year, we jointly published a piece of work with the World Wildlife Fund looking at the water and carbon footprint of household food waste in the UK. It found that water used to produce food that householders in the UK then waste represents 6% of the total UK's water requirements - 6.2 billion litres per year.

To see how we have arrived at such high figures it is worth considering just how much water is needed to produce everyday household food products, such as beef burgers. When you add up all the water used in growing the crops and maintaining the pasture, and processing the meat, it means that around 2,400 litres of water is used to produce just one burger.

Clothing is another area which uses significant amounts of water. Landfilled clothing wastes the water that was used to make clothes. An estimated 2,400 billion litres per year was used to make clothes that are landfilled, and most of this clothing could have been re-used. The water used to make the wasted food and clothing is more than double the water used in our homes each day. Preventing this waste not only saves money, it also reduces the amount of carbon and water needed for the UK's consumption.

So what can be done? Better design and more informed consumption will help us all waste less in the first place and save money. WRAP will support more resource-efficient design by working with businesses on new ways of delivering products and services to customers.

WRAP will also be working to improve resource efficiency in businesses and their supply chains and encouraging reuse, particularly of textiles and electronics. As well as this we also need to recover as much value as possible from the waste we can collect, whether that's in the form of resources we can use over and over again, or as energy. And the less we waste, and the longer we can keep resources moving round the economy, the more environmental and economic gains we'll make.

We also want to encourage repair and more recycling to cut as much waste as possible by working with individuals, communities and businesses. To help achieve this WRAP's business plan draws on our expertise, experience and ability to bring partnerships together to support real change to the way the UK thinks about recycling and waste prevention.

From: http://t.co/dXN1FJ3

UK - New waste prevention loan fund launched!

Waste and Resources Action Programme has launched the new Waste Prevention Loan Fund (WPLF) which aims to reduce waste at source by supporting organisations to introduce business models and processes which make more efficient use of material resources. Examples include product reuse, repair and upgrading services (eg through leasing), and materials recovery and reuse by the manufacturer.

The WPLF has £1 million pounds to support businesses, social enterprises and local authorities over the next four years. The maximum investment will be £100,000 and the minimum will be £20,000. The £1m funding will be distributed in phases. In the first phase, a percentage of the funding will be made available as loans to assist with cash-flow for a business (retailer or product supplier) which is switching from generating immediate income through product sales to generating income from service delivery.

Applicants will need to demonstrate new approaches which offer substantial resource savings and can be scaled-up and replicated to have significant benefit at the national level. The loan fund is designed to help introduce solutions where commercial funding is otherwise not available.
The WPLF will have multiple phases for applicants. The first, open now, is for businesses and focusing on resource-efficient business models (REBMs) particularly for electrical and electronic products, clothing and furniture. Further phases, which will be announced later in the! year, will support wider waste prevention and reuse activities in selected product categories. These will include product recovery for reuse in a closed-loop economy.

These phases will be open to a wider range of applicants.Complementing the WPLF, WRAP is separately inviting tenders from businesses seeking help with planning and monitoring REBMs.

These projects will support the technical evaluation of business benefits and resource savings, pre- and post-implementation. WRAP's primary interest is in REBMs for electrical & electronic products in major categories (eg white goods, televisions and laptops), but developments in the clothing and furniture sectors will also be considered. Support is available on condition that the learning and evidence of savings can be shared (while respecting commercial sensitivities

For further details about the WPLF, visit http://www.wrap.org.uk/retail_supply_chain/home_electrical/wplf.html

Canada - Waste and its social context

The Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence in Canada recently staged a useful conference, and useful material is now available from this conference.

From May 8 - 11, 2011, Waste - The Social Context 2011 conference brought together researchers and practitioners from a wide variety of disciplines from around the world to discuss the social aspects of wastewater and waste management. The event was a unique opportunity for delegates to meet and to present research in a variety of disciplines contributing to innovative solutions in sustainable waste management.

This conference was held at Grant MacEwan University's Robbins Health Learning Centre - an efficient, bright, modern, and environmentally friendly venue. The waste prevention presentations and papers are available from:

• JAPAN: Daisuke Numata - Citizens Attitude and Policy for 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) Behavior in Japan
  


• CANADA: Dr. Emily Huddart-Kennedy - Used: Why Some Choose to Avoid Buying Used Goods
  


• UK: Kit Strange - Waste Social Context Reuse
  


• CANADA: Dr. Naomi Krogman - Morality and Consumption: A Social Current Linked to the Reduction of Household Waste
  


• CANADA: David Merredew - Grass Cycling - Finding the Right Message
  


• AUSTRIA: Felicitas Schneider - Barriers for the Implementation of Prevention Measures Concerning Food Waste
  


• AUSTRIA: Felicitas Schneider - The History of Food Wastage
  


• MALAYSIA: Kohei Watanabe - Assessing the Potential of Reduction and Recycling of Household Waste in Malaysia
  


• AUSTRALIA: Lauren Michener - The Compost Revolution in Sydney
  


• AUSTRALIA: Lauren Michener - Using a Food Waste Diary to Impact Food Waste Reduction in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs

Enjoy!

Hackney: Free Compost Day

The eleventh annual international Compost Awareness Week will be celebrated from Sunday 1st to Saturday 7th May 2011. CAW 2011 aims to encourage more people to realise the benefits of home composting and the great results that can be achieved by using peat-free composts containing recycled material. Hackney's recycling team are giving away 15 tonnes of compost in Petchey Academy, E8 from 11am to 3pm on the 7th of May.

USA - polystyrene foam cups and plates use less energy, water than paper or corn-based alternatives

A new peer-reviewed study finds that commonly used cups, plates and sandwich containers made of polystyrene foam use significantly less energy and water than comparable paper-based or corn-based (polylactic: PLA) alternatives, primarily due to polystyrene foam's much lower weight.

The life-cycle inventory and greenhouse gas emissions study compares average-weight polystyrene foam, paperboard and PLA cups used for hot (16 ounce) and cold (32 ounce) drinks, 9-inch dinner plates and "clamshell" sandwich containers. 2 Researchers modelled energy consumption, water use, solid waste (by weight and volume) and greenhouse gas emissions for each product resulting ! from production, transportation and disposal. Some key findings:

Energy use: Polystyrene foam products consume significantly less energy than the alternatives-half as much as wax-coated paperboard cups and one-third as much as PLA clamshells. Water use: Polystyrene foam products use significantly less water than the alternatives-up to four times less than PLA clamshells.

Solid waste: Polystyrene foam products create significantly less solid waste by weight than the alternatives-up to five times less than paperboard and PLA products.

Polystyrene foam cups for hot drinks create less waste by volume than the alternatives-significantly less than paperboard cups with corrugated sleeves used for insulation.

Greenhouse gases: Polystyrene foam products generate slightly more greenhouse gas emissions than PLA products, expressed as net CO2 equivalents. If paperboard products do not degrade after disposal, they store carbon and generate fewer greenhouse gas emissions than polystyrene foam products; however, if paperboard products degrade to the maximum extent, they generate more greenhouse gas emissions than polystyrene foam products, so comparisons of greenhouse gas emissions vary widely depending on assumptions about the degradation of paperboard products.

The study's authors found that lower weight products with similar functionality-such as polystyrene foam products composed of more than 90% air-generally produce smaller environmental burdens.Although PLA is corn-based, the study notes: "According to the [PLA producer] NatureWorks LLC website, PLA does not biodegrade in landfills."Copies of the report on the study Life cycle inventory of foam polystyrene, paper-based, and PLA foodservice products (0.8 MB) can be downloaded from: http://www.blogger.com/ht!%20tp:/plasticfoodservicefacts.com/Life-Cycle-Inventory-Foodservice-Products

Loving food can cut waste and help save

Visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com

World - bottled water: a ridiculous waste?

Bottled water has been a big-selling commercial beverage around the world since the late 1980s. According to the Worldwatch Institute, global bottled water consumption has more than quadrupled since 1990. Today Americans consume over 30 billion litres of water out of some 50 billion (mostly plastic) bottles every year. The Beverage Marketing Association reports that in 2008 bottled water comprised over 28 percent of the U.S. liquid refreshment beverage market. The only bottled drinks Americans consume more of are carbonated sodas like Coke and Pepsi.

And frankly, yes, it is a ridiculous waste that we obtain so much of our drinking water this way when it is free flowing and just as good if not better for you right out of the tap. According to the Earth Policy Institute (EPI), some 2.7 million tons of petroleum-derived plastic are used to bottle water around the world every year. "Making bottles to meet Americans' demand for bottled water requires more than 1.5 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel some 100,000 U.S. cars for a year," says EPI researcher Emily Arnold. And just because we can recycle these bottles does not mean that we do: The Container Recycling Institute reports that 86% of plastic water bottles in the U.S. end up as garbage or litter.


The financial costs to consumers are high, too: According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), bottled water costs up to 1,900 times more than tap water. EWG is particularly appalled at the lack of transparency by leading bottled water sellers as to the sources of their water and whether it is purified or has been tested for contaminants. According to a recent survey by the group, 18% of the 173 bottled waters on the U.S. market today fail to list the location of their source; a third disclose nothing about the treatment or purity of the water inside their plastic bottles.

EWG recommends that consumer resist the urge to buy bottled water and go instead for filtered tap water. "You'll save money, drink water that's purer than tap water and help solve the global glut of plastic bottles," the group advises, adding that it supports stronger federal standards to enforce consumers' right to know about what's in their bottled water besides water. Until that day comes, concerned consumes should check out EWG's Bottled Water Scorecard, a free website that provides information on various bottled water brands, where they originate and whether and how they are treated to remove contaminants.

News from Health News Digest and photo from here


PS: I remember the results when we took some bottled water samples to our uni labs, the mineral readings were completely wrong and some were not deemed to be safe. Tap water is more regulated than mineral water and for this reason many say tap water whether is filtered or not is purer (healthier) for you.

UK - paint reuse network touched thousands of lives in 2010

Community RePaint, the UK-wide paint reuse network, helped to make Britain a brighter place last year by supporting over 12,000 groups and people to transform their local environment. The network re-distributed more than 215,000 litres of leftover, reusable paint across the country in 2010, to projects such as the makeover of the children's ward at Newham University Hospital, London, which was carried out by young people participating in the Prince's Trust Team Programme.

"As part of the programme the team choose a project that will have a long lasting benefit for the community and then set about raising funds to make it possible,'" explained Team Leader, Ben Adefisan, "By using paint from our local Community RePaint scheme we were able to create a bright and welcoming environment for the children on the Rainbow Ward and still have money for the other materials that we couldn't otherwise afford."

"Andy is a 41 year-old man suffering from mental health problems, who, for a number of reasons, no longer felt safe in his home, but could not afford to move," said Community RePaint's Manager Martin Pearse. "We were able to help him to re-decorate his flat and improve his living conditions by supplying paint that would have otherwise ended up in landfill."

In 2010 ommunity RePaint:

• Collected 316,641 litres of paint
• Re-distributed 215,848 litres of paint
• Saved 561 tonnes of CO2, the equivalent of taking 190 cars off Britain's roads
• Provided 132 volunteer and 112 training opportunities

Sue Brighton, Environmental Projects Manager added that, "Dulux is pleased to continue the long term sponsorship of the Community RePaint network and shares its vision to touch the lives of many individuals! and communities in such a positive way through paint."For further information, please visit: http://www.communityrepaint.org.uk/

UK - big brands sign up to waste reduction pledges

A number of the UK's best-known businesses yesterday stepped up their commitment to reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill, signing up to two schemes designed to cut waste levels and increase UK recycling rates. The Guardian reports that Associated British Foods, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Kraft Foods, Premier Foods and Procter & Gamble joined the latest group of retail firms to sign up to the second phase of the Courtauld Commitment, a voluntary scheme run by the government that sees firms commit to meeting a series of waste-reduction targets.

Under the terms of the voluntary agreements signed between the companies and the government-backed Waste and Resource Action Programme (WRAP), firms agree that by 2012 they will have reduced the carbon impact of packaging 10%, cut household food and drink waste 4%, and cut packaging waste from the grocery supply chain 5%. The latest signatories join a host of high-profile firms in signing up to the current phase of the Courtauld Agreement, including Asda, Boots, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's and Tesco.Meanwhile, WRAP announced that two of the UK's largest construction firms - Barratt Developments and Hanson UK - have signed up to the Halving Waste to Landfill initiative, which has seen 540 firms commit to cutting the amount of waste levels by 50%.

"One of the biggest challenges society faces over the next decade is reducing the environmental impact of the things we buy and build," said Liz Goodwin, chief executive of WRAP. "These responsibility deals bring about changes that deliver both commercial and environment benefits." "Building a sustainable business is not only about protecting the environment. With it comes a leaner, more efficient business that strips out waste and saves money. The voluntary approach allows industry sectors to move as one and deliver change without government intervention." The news came as reports emerged yesterday that councils are considering limiting the number of black bags that households receive each year, and charging people extra if they exceed their waste allowance.

Technorati Tags: Courtauld Commitment waste minimisation waste prevention businesses WRAP

North London - European Waste Reduction Week

The European Week for Waste Reduction started and finished in 20 - 28 November. Their aim was to inspire residents and show how by making simple changes in everyday life can significantly reduce the amount of waste thrown away. They had a series of activities lined up during the week across north London for you to take part in including:

• Creative cooking with leftovers


• 'Sew good' workshop


• Love Food Hate Waste Roadshows


• Collaboration for Growth event


• Hackney plastic bag amnesty


• Nappuccino's at Hackney City Farm


• Camden Give & Take events

It's the third year in a row they got involved in the European Week for Waste Reduction, run as part of the European Commission's LIFE+ Programme. Last year residents in North London contributed to the 2,672 actions that were implemented in 14 European countries. Secondary school children in the seven NLWA boroughs contributed to last year's activities. More than 100 pupils took part in the Waste: The Bigger Picture poster competition which ran from 13 September to 15 October.

The competition helped to raise awareness of waste prevention among young people. The message was spread even more widely with the winning design from each borough being used as the basis for seven eye catching and informative posters, being displayed on buses across north London from 15 to 28 November. Congratulations to the winners.

Hackney - Rivka, Year 9, Stoke Newington School

Text from North London Waste Authority's page

Inter- Waste Prevention Word Cloud

World Cloud done with http://www.wordle.net/create

UK - Green Patriot Posters

Check out The Green Patriot Posters website which has a new book of 50 detachable, read-to-hang posters on the theme of sustainability by some of the world's most prominent graphic designers and artists

London: Take the Zero Waste Challenge

Hackney Council's recycling team in London have released a new Zero Waste Challenge pack that aims to challenge residents to reduce and reuse their waste as much as possible over a seven day period. They can download the Challenger's Pack (PDF, 2.7MB) and pick a week to measure how much normal waste they produce the week before the zero waste week. Then record the amount of waste thrown out during the actual challenge week and send results to them at recycling@hackney.gov.uk

Click to enlarge and read the comments from previous challengers!

Technorati Tags: Hackney waste minimisation waste prevention zero waste waste reduction