August 12, 2005—Major Scottish retailers have made a commitment to reverse the growth and reduce the amount of packaging waste by the year 2010. Thirteen retailers have signed an assurance with the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), who are managing the UK-wide Courtauld Commitment to cut out waste. Its aims are:
- Design out packaging waste growth by 2008.
- Deliver absolute reductions in packaging waste by 2010.
- Identify ways to tackle the problem of food waste.
In November 2004, the Scottish Executive announced the provision of 764,000 through the Retail Innovation Fund managed by WRAP. WRAP promotes recycling and resource efficiency across the UK. Its main aims are to find markets for recycled materials and to undertake waste minimization work. WRAP is funded by the Scottish Executive DEFRA and the administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland.
Businesses with a turnover of 2 million or more and that use more than 50 tons of packaging per year are required, under packaging legislation, to recycle and/or recover some of their waste. Packaging recovery targets are required, under packaging legislation, to recycle and/or recover some of their waste. Packaging recovery targets are currently 50 percent rising to 70 percent from December 31, 2008.
For more information, visit the WRAP Web site.
