UK printing companies are sending an estimated 120,000 tonnes of label waste to landfill every year, due to the belief of there being no alternative solution.
Until recently there was no option but to send this waste to landfill as the waste needed shredding before it could be reused.
This posed a problem as the strong, sticky waste repeatedly caused shredding machine failure, and was deemed unrecyclable.
However, the Zero Labels 2 Landfill Scheme, which is provided by Prismm Environmental and sponsored by the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF), solves this problem by providing a service whereby label waste is diverted from landfill and instead used to produce high value SRF fuel used in the production of cement.
This will improve the environmental performance of label printing companies, which will be popular with big brand clients seeking improved sustainability through their supply chains. It will also reduce operational costs by cutting landfill tax bills.
Materials that are collected under the scheme include matrix waste, glassine, silicon packaging paper, waste foil on cores and make-ready and set-up reels. Collections can be arranged from as little as 600kg up to 26 tonnes and are available nationwide.
The scheme’s benefits include:
-
Reduced onsite storage of label waste
-
An outsourced solution
-
Reduced waste costs.
Through this scheme, Prismm has saved 42,190 tonnes of label waste from landfill since 2015, collecting from printers nationwide.
