UK businesses should “commit to stricter recycling targets and become more accountable for achieving their goals”. That was the message from the Managing Director of goplasticpallets.com, the leading provider of sustainable plastic pallets and boxes, as the business surpassed 1,000 tonnes of plastic recycled since 2019.
The Eastbourne-based company has been on a long-term mission to create responsible supply chains through a number of initiatives, including the launch of a first-of-its-kind recycling scheme four years ago. As part of this commitment, goplasticpallets.com promises to collect and recycle all plastic pallets and boxes at the end of their service lives – regardless of who supplied them.
In 2022, the organisation recycled more than 224,000kg (or 38 truck loads) of plastic pallets and boxes – transporting it from the UK to its recycling centre in Belgium. Starting the new year on a similar note, goplasticpallets.com recently celebrated surpassing the 1,000 tonne milestone (or 185 truck loads) since 2019.
When you consider the popular APB 1210 Pool Open 5R Black weighs 21kg, 1,000 tonnes is the equivalent of 47,619 pallets. If stacked on top of one another (160mm in height), the tower would be over nine times higher than the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa (830m), 17 times higher than the Empire State Building (443m), and a whopping 79 times taller than London’s Big Ben, which stands at 96m. Meanwhile, if you laid the equivalent pallets together at their longest side, they would span 35.5 miles, which would take the average person around 12 hours to walk.
Jim Hardisty, Managing Director of goplasticpallets.com, said: “Our pioneering recycling scheme is designed to ensure that plastic pallets are reused and recycled, reducing the need for new resources and contributing to a circular economy. We guarantee to take full responsibility for recycling the plastic pallets and boxes we provide, which have an average working life of eight years, as well as recycling those from other suppliers.
“We are proud to reach this massive milestone. This scheme sets us apart in the UK pallet industry and demonstrates our leadership and commitment to sustainability. This is further supported by the fact that 93% of our plastic pallets are made from 100% recycled materials.
“Recycling plastic is a vital practice in the fight against climate change. It helps to lower pollution, conserve the planet’s natural resources, ease the demand on fossil fuel consumption, and save on fast-depleting landfill space. There is a growing desire to promote sustainable supply chains, however, I would like to see even more businesses commit to stricter recycling targets and become more accountable for achieving their goals.”
