Retailers send only 10 per cent of waste to landfill

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A report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has shown that retailers have already exceeded their own target of sending less than 15 per cent of waste to landfill by 2013.

The A Better Retailing Climate report shows that retail signatories to the target sent only 10 per cent of waste to landfill in 2012.

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This had fallen considerably since 2005, when 45 per cent of waste was sent to landfill.

The 25 retailers signed up to the scheme, representing half of all retail by turnover, also said that they are on track to meet ambitious targets to reduce packaging and food waste.

However, in a part of the report on policy barriers and incentives, the said it supports the Government’s ambitious to create a zero waste economy in the UK, but waste policy needs to address the quality of recycling collected, as well as greater consistency in the range of materials collected by local authorities.

BRC environment policy advisor Alice Ellison said: “This update demonstrates that the retail industry is going above and beyond in its commitments to reducing its environmental impact across all aspects of its operations.

“Despite the downturn and other challenges affecting business, retailers are continuing to innovate and collaborate in this space, which delivers real environmental benefits as well as value for their customers.”