Securing the future of recycled content HDPE milk bottles

Nampak Plastics has further underlined its commitment to producing recycled content HDPE milk bottles from next year, through an agreement with plastics reprocessor, Greenstar (WES).

The deal will see Greenstar provide Nampak with 6,000 tonnes of food grade recycled HDPE from early summer 2008. The material will help in the company’s drive to increase the recycled content of HDPE bottles it manufactures. It has already committed to producing a 30% recycled content bottle in the during 2009, with the potential to increase this further in the future.

The news follows a recent agreement for the supply of 6,000 tonnes of recycled HDPE to Nampak from reprocessor Closed Loop London, as well as Nampak’s decision to open its own 13,000 tonne capacity HDPE reprocessing plant in 2009. Nampak also played a key role in developing the world’s first recycled content HDPE bottle which won several prestigious packaging and environmental awards in the and internationally.

James Crick, Business Development Director, Nampak Plastics, commented; “2007 has been a year of firsts for Nampak; we were in the project team that produced the world’s first recycled content bottle, we were the first to announce plans to make recycled content bottles widely available across the UK, and plan to be the first closed loop HDPE recycler in the country. With this deal, we are further underlining our commitment to be at the forefront of improving the environmental credentials of a firm consumer favourite.”

Greenstar (WES) is already producing optically sorted washed flake at its facility in and delivery of the Vacurema equipment (which performs the super-clean) is expected in early February 2008.

Greenstar is currently using milk bottles generated by its own collection and sorting facilities at Darwen and Skegness. The group is also commissioning the largest MRF in the country, at Aldridge in the , and along with bottles from recently acquired Verdant Group, expect to be fully self-sufficient by the end of the summer.

Greenstar Group CEO Ian Wakelin said of the project; “This contract and our recent acquisitions means that, as a group, we are now in the position to deliver world class recycling at every stage. We can take plastic waste from the householders bin, collect it and sort it and finally return it to industry.”

Greenstar WES managing director James Donaldson commented; “This contract comes just as we start the final installation of the final bits of our plant. We have been washing milk bottles for a while now and we are excited to working with a key customer like Nampak to deliver a very technically challenging recycling process.”