Slimming your waste at work: a Suffolk case-study

Regular visitors to this blog will be familiar with my passion for slimming down our rubbish at home, but I am also a sticky-beak when it comes to finding out what goes on behind closed doors in organisations across the country.

Inspired by my recent Smart Mums visit to British Gas, where I managed only a passing glimpse of their internal recycling activities, I was keen to find a smaller company closer to home that would allow me to have a poke about their own waste management facilities.  I really don't think I could have found a finer example of corporate recycling.


Music Sales is an international company which specialises in music copyright, printed music, book publishing and digital distribution. It also has 20 music shops that fall under the MusicRoom brand as well as 125 affiliated stores around the UK.

Rob Child, who manages the company's waste stream took me on a tour of their distribution centre, which is based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

The first thing that struck me was the relevance of Rob's role within the business. Until fairly recently he was responsible for managing the procurement of packaging materials that are required for distribution.  It was only 18 months ago that a newly appointed Head of Distribution had the vision to expand his responsibilities to incorporate waste management.  

Waste is something that Music Sales cannot take lightly. The company distributes to the public as well as trade customers in over 100 countries and its online business provides access to over 250,000 products.  From a waste management perspective, this means a heck of a lot of packaging coming through its warehouse door.

The company's trade waste service is provided by St Edmundsbury Borough Council.  Until 18 months ago, much of the packaging waste was landfilled and Rob explained that when he took over the waste management role, the landfill skip was collected two or three times per week.

These days, their landfill skip is now only collected just once a fortnight and as a result, their waste management bill has dropped by two thirds.

That is a startling saving, which has been achieved simply by diverting recyclables out of landfill through easy in-house segregation.

The warehouse now separates cardboard, paper and plastic film, which are common materials that travel through its distribution facilities.  These are sorted by staff into the crates that are provided before being baled ready for collection.

When you consider that last year alone, 90 tonnes of paper were handled by the distribution centre as well as 10 tonnes of plastic packing, responsible procurement and recycling processes can make a huge contribution to the company's waste footprint.  Rob recognises this and since taking over the waste management role, his own procurement processes have led to a focus on packaging that contains recycled materials as well as products that can be more easily recycled.

But the company's waste reduction activities don't stop there. As well as core business recycling, Music Sales takes legal responsibility for its electronic waste.  Rob also encourages staff to use desktop recycling boxes and recycle their coffee machine cups and refillable Thermos flasks were provided to staff in the warehouse, which has helped to cut down even further on waste.  Dotted around the site are trade-waste equivalents of the wheelie bins that St Edmundsbury residents can find at home, which means that staff can also recycle aluminium cans and mixed plastics.

In just 18 months, the culture at Music Sales has totally changed and Rob is pleased with the fast turnaround.  A waste audit conducted by an independent company a year ago revealed that they were already achieving so much, they couldn't find any other way of improving their process.

Personally I think the transformation of the company's waste stream is a real success story and it would be great if it could inspire other businesses to follow suit.  Not only has the business seen a great financial saving from diverting recyclables from landfill, but Rob and his colleagues are also delighted with the contribution that the company is making regarding sustainability.

Suffolk people love their food but hate waste

Mike Culver - St Edmundsbury Borough Council

I know this post is going to show me up as a bit of a recycling groupie because while most folk are happy to be star-spotting and hanging around stage doors for photos and autographs of their favourite stars, there's me pegging it into town to try and snap our local recycling officers hard at work!

So having got the nod that it was St Edmundsbury's turn to host Suffolk County Council's marvellous Love Food Hate Waste Stand, I thought I'd drop into town yesterday to take some photos of the free tools that they were giving away to residents as part of their promotion for the European Week for Waste Reduction.

But there I was, running a bit late, yet still planning to get in before midday, when I got a call on my mobile at 11.15am. It was Mike - pictured above - from St Edmundsbury, telling me the stand had been such a success they were close to running out!

Of course, I picked up pace and full-steam ahead, hurtled into town but by the time I got there, the tables were empty and all was left were a dozen or so of the 550 promotional reusable bags that they were giving away! I know it was market day, but that is astounding.

Visitors to the stand were keen to learn how to reduce food waste and engaged brilliantly with the team which combined recycling officers from St Edmundsbury, neighbouring Forest Heath and Suffolk County Council.

So, sorry I've not got any snaps of the gadgets and gizmos folks, but if you live in the area, there should be some great coverage in the local papers and the Love Food Hate Waste stand will also be popping up elsewhere in the county. All the dates can be found at www.suffolkrecycling.org.uk. Of course if you live outside the county, you'll probably see your own council's stand coming to an event near you too. So do keep your eyes peeled.

Well at least I got the opportunity to show my support for Chicken Lovers.



Yes indeed, I can confirm that chicken lovers do hate waste, as do Apple Lovers, Lamb Lovers and Potato lovers. To see the rest of the fabulous photos that accompany the Love Food Hate Waste campaign, pop over to WRAP's www.lovefoodhatewaste.com, where you'll find lots of tips and recipes to help you plan for reducing waste this Christmas. Even Arctic Aunt is available, hot off the press, to help quash some of those freezer myths.

So having hunted down recycling officers and been introduced to Arctic Aunt, it looks like I've got no excuse not to go on my own Freezer Expedition in my little part of Suffolk this weekend. The mission, to start using up stuff before Christmas kicks in and to make room for more tasty leftovers.

Tv presenter, Sue Perkins, is also doing her bit too, as shown in the video below. It would be great if you could also join in. Just remember to send out the search party if I'm not back by Monday!




_________________________________________________________

ZERO WASTE WEEK: The FINAL Weigh-In

Today is Monday 17th March, which marks not just the end of St Edmundsbury's Zero Waste Week, but the end of my personal 8 week challenge to reduce the amount of waste that my family sends to landfill.

So after eight weeks of buying less, learning new habits, double-checking recycling opportunities and being ever mindful of what I'm throwing away, here's the moment I've been waiting for........


CUE DRUM-ROLL FOR THE FINAL WEIGH-IN......


So without further ado .... the contents of this week's black bin are.....


1. One Plaster (from my finger injury on day 1)


And that's it....Just one itty bitty first-aid plaster (band-aid), from when I cut my finger last Monday! If you look carefully at the photo, you can see it sitting on wheel of the bin!



...and that really is the total amount of landfill rubbish that our family has created in one whole week!

BUT PHEW....IT WAS CLOSE!

There was almost my tube of toothpaste, which Mr A tried to bung in the bin, but I rescued it, rolled it up and gave it some extra squeezes and I reckon I've got another day before its contents are exhausted.

But there have been some other candidates too. When I looked in the bin yesterday afternoon there were:

1. Two Butter Wrappers (teetering on the edge, awaiting their fate)

2. A small length of scrunched-up sellotape (thanks to my renegade 3 year old)

3. Some used cotton buds (thanks to Mr A. I suppose he's not done badly, but I knew there would be something to contend with)

As it's Zero Waste Week and I possess the tenacity of a dog with a bone, I was determined that nothing else was going to be thrown away. I have already declared the plaster, despite a couple of suggestions to burn it or run it down to the local hospital, but with my sense of fairness its only fate is landfill.

However, I needed to do something with the rest of the stuff, which called for extreme measures.

I discovered I could tear off the plastic film that coated the inside of the butter wrapper, but I was still unsure whether either of these components are recyclable. As for the cotton buds, I thought the best bet for those would be to stuff them in an old sock and bung them in with the next load of washing. They came out clean and I tore off the cotton wool and put it in the compost bin, which only left the thin plastic tubes.

Hmmmm, not bad, but I said I was tenacious!

I knew I needed some back-up and my secret weapon came to mind...

...a-Ha...

No, not the 1980s Norwegian pop-group with the dulcit tones of Morton Harket, but my three year old who constantly begs for opportunities to make things.

"Mess to Impress" is his tagline!

So, I called him to my rescue and gave him some paper, glue and the little bits of rubbish that I'd rescued from the bin.

He couldn't believe his luck and got to work on some junk art, combining the plastic tubes, sellotape and butter wrappers with other bits that he's collected, all following the principles of "Reuse". It's a bit abstract, which could be appropriate when I think back to my challenges with recycling.

He couldn't think of an appropriate name for it, but I'm going to call it "Unburied Treasures". One thing's for certain, I daren't ever throw it away but I suppose I could always put it on eBay and hope for a fiver.

And that's where the story of my own Rubbish Diet challenge ends....at the end of Zero Waste Week, with our black bin containing just one plaster!

Personally, I am amazed at the results.

Even though it set out as a challenge to reduce my rubbish, the effects on other areas of my lifestyle have been incredible. I now spend less on food and am more thrifty. I am more organised with shopping activities and have got into a routine of using a range of outlets, which provide more eco-friendly options.

What has been great is the immense enthusiasm and support from the Internet Community. The comments have been fantastic and inspirational and it is the advice from our "unsung heroes" from across the globe that has led to the success of my own personal challenge. I would like to thank all contributors who have made suggestions, sent comments of motivation, shared their stories and have helped to promote the wider issues. Big thanks also go to Woman's Hour, Radio Suffolk, Ireland's Newstalk, Sustained Magazine and East Anglian Daily Times for promoting the blog and the challenge. I never expected it to get such attention, but it's been great and I owe a big thank you to Cybele at Freecycle for that. Thanks also to Wiggly Wigglers for helping with my composting queries and inviting me onto their podcast, which is coming up this week.

I would also like to extend special thanks to Melanie Rimmer at Beansprouts for her great tips at the beginning of the challenge as well as Kate McFarland at Edmundsbury Council Council for her advice along the way. As well as to all my friends, thanks also go to Tracey Smith at International Downshifting Week for being a fabulous mentor and to my good friend Christina Surdhar of About Bury for sticking by me, allowing me to extend my deadlines and letting me bore her with my talks of rubbish! I'm sorry if I've omitted a mention, but it's beginning to sound like an Oscar speech!

However, I would like to make one last thank you. The biggest thanks go to Mr A and the Junior Posse, for putting up with my ideas and my nagging over the last few months. Thank you guys for the big effort you've made and long may it continue. You know it's worth it.

So what's next? Well, Mr A has been so bowled over by the results of The Rubbish Diet, that he now wants me to move onto tackling our Clutter, Energy use and Spending, but first things first Mr A. We've got to make sure the rubbish is kept down before we go onto the next challenge, which means The Rubbish Diet is here to stay for a little while longer. I know I said it would be just eight weeks, but there's so much that's been left unexplored and I am now officially hooked!

So what can you expect from here-on in?

Well there's going to be less about me and more about others, much to the relief of some. Here are just some of the things I'm planning to take a look at:

• Waste Management in Switzerland, a country which has the reputation of being one of the top recyclers in the world.
  
• How restaurants cope with food waste?
• Getting the low-down from packaging companies, how do they see the future?
• What happens at a materials recycling facility?
• More solutions for recycling some of the tricky little things.
  
• Some fabulous products made from recycled materials.
• Indeed profiling anyone in the production/waste stream that is making interesting progress in the right direction.
• I might even ask Gordon Brown about his own rubbish! Strange, but I'm now finding the idea of rummaging through the trash at No. 10 quite appealing.
  

I am also going to include a series on our "unsung heroes", profiling stories from people who are already making the effort, no matter how long they've been doing it or why. Whether it's down to a generational difference, lack of money or concern for the environment, it's other people's experiences that are truly motivating, so please send me your stories as it would be great to promote case studies that illustrate best practice and which help to inspire others.

The site will also feature the progress of other people who decide to take up The Rubbish Diet and attempt Zero Waste for themselves. So, if you would like to rise to the challenge, get some help and feature your story here, then please get in touch. All enquiries and information should be sent to enquiries@therubbishidet.co.uk.

And now I'm off to celebrate...but not with champagne .... oh no!

Today is Bin Day and I am going to celebrate by NOT PUTTING THE BIN OUT...

because for the first time in my life as a responsible adult...there's no need to.....HOORAY! Indeed, if I keep this up, I won't have to put it out for weeks or months!

So I'm now going to take a few days off and enjoy the celebrations, but please come back in a couple of days time for the next update, or sign up for the RSS Feed at http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheRubbishDiet

In the meantime, I am going to leave you with a final message in the form of an illustration that I commissioned from the brilliant artist Ray Smith of www.thegreenpen.co.uk. For best effect, click on the picture to enlarge it and enjoy!

(The Rubbish Diet, copyright Ray Smith. Please do not copy without permission)

There are more great cartoons at Ray's website, so if you're in need of a distraction, I recommend that you go and have a look.

____________________________________________________________________

Promoting Waste Reduction through Schools

One of the great channels of promoting ways to reduce waste is through schools and teaching children how to reduce, reuse and recycle.

And with this in mind, I would like to introduce the Packasaurus Ex, which has been created by Caroline Fish, the Waste Awareness Campaign Officer of Suffolk County Council. The lovely monster was on loan to St Edmundsbury's Kate McFarland yesterday for a visit to a local school, to promote Zero Waste Week at a press launch. I was in the unusual position of having an hour to spare, so popped over to take some photos.

Packasauras Ex, the Excessive Packaging Monster drew the attention of many of the children, who were asking how it was made and they had great fun trying to spot familiar packaging that they have at home. It was easy to see how keen and interested the children were, firing off questions left right and centre. They showed great interest in the excessive beastie, about which you can find more information at the Suffolk Recycling website.

Radio Suffolk were present for an interview with Councillor Stevens, the local portfolio holder for Environment and Street Scene, as were photographers from the local press including The BFP and the East Anglian Daily Times.

Here you can see a photograph of the photographers, who were taking images to promote the school's toy swap scheme that they are organising for Zero Waste Week.




There are lots of resources and ideas to support waste awareness for schools. St Edmundsbury are working closely with local schools to organise Zero Waste lunches and toy swaps. Suffolk Recycling are also running their very own Design a Bag Competition for its 2008 Waste Challenge. Further afield WRAP are promoting a rapping robot, which can be loaned out to schools around the country.

Our local school is also getting involved next week, which should be a fantastic learning experience for the children. More on that next week.

In the meantime, if you live in Bury St Edmunds, be sure to get your March issue of About Bury which has got a fab feature about Zero Waste Week and The Rubbish Diet, written by "Yours Truly". You can find it in our lovely independent shops, plus some other major locations in and around Bury St Edmunds.

By the way, I am sorely tempted to have a big clear out next week and book our local radio station's Black Thunder to come and collect the stuff that can be re-used. They are promoting Green Month throughout March. If you're wondering what I am on about, take a look at the SGR FM site to find out more about the Black Thunder pick-ups. There are also competitions for schools as well as a great online game called Beat The Binman, which is not just entertaining for children, it's great for adults too.
____________________________________________________________________

Recycling Men

I love this cartoon and have spent much time in fits of laughter when I should have been getting on with my backlog of work. Many thanks go to my new mate, Ray Smith, for letting me use it. He's a much talented illustrator, who injects that extra smack of fun into recycling and waste management. Superb! His website should be up soon, so watch this space.

One man who should definitely not be put into the recycling bin is St Edmundsbury's Daniel Sage, who is the Strategy and Policy Manager for the council's Waste and Street Scene service.

The word on the street is that our Daniel is officially hot. And it's true. Thanks to his fantastic work in spearheading new initiatives such as the Battery Kerbside Collection Trial and Zero Waste Week for the borough, he has made it into the UK's list of the Hot 100 people contributing to environmental change through waste management. Published by the industry's Resource magazine, his entry in at 99 puts him in the very good company of figures such as Jonathon Porritt and Zac Goldsmith.

It's great to see that it hasn't gone to his head. Although Dan won't be able to attend the Zero Waste Week promotion stand at in Bury St Edmunds and Haverhill next week, you should be able to catch him at one or more of the following events that are coming up:

• An evening about recycling at the Erskine Centre in Chedburgh, Suffolk. 10 March. 8pm-9pm.
• Business Waste Surgery: 13th March at the Borough Office in Haverhill. 1-3pm
• Business Waste Surgery: 14th March at the Borough Office on Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds, 10am-12pm.

(The business surgeries will advise businesses how they can reduce waste as well as increase energy efficiency)

As you can see this Zero Waste business is really interesting stuff.

If you live in St Edmundsbury and would like to get involved in Zero Waste Week, Waste Development Officer Kate McFarland (who is also fabulous) will be available at the Zero Waste stand next week to answer your questions. You will be able to find her at :

• Bury St Edmunds (outside Woolworths) on Monday 25th Feb - 1pm-3pm
• Haverhill Peas Market Hill on Wednesday 27th Feb - 1pm-3pm

If you are unable to make it along, Kate can also be contacted on 01284 757337.

If you're not in our area, why not try your own hand at your own Rubbish Diet. You could even see if your own council is willing to run a Zero Waste campaign. It really is fun and thought- provoking at the same time. Councils are always up for some new ideas and you never know what benefits you will see in your area.

You might even track down your own environmental hottie, who can make it into the Hot 100 next year. I certainly hope that we won't be recycling Daniel or his team for some time, not with the fantastic work that they are doing in St Edmundsbury.

____________________________________________________________________