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North East company recycles for M&S

A North East recycling company has won a major contract to supply Marks and Spencer’s environmentally friendly milk containers.

Greenstar WES, of Redcar, east Cleveland, started supplying the plastic flakes used to make the company’s milk containers a month ago.

It comes after Greenstar WES, which employs 70 people at its Wilton factory, developed the technology to convert plastic milk bottles from consumers’ bins into food-grade plastic.

Although companies such as M&S already use recycled plastic, it has to undergo treatments at several sites across Europe, whereas the Redcar plant it the first to do it in one place.

The company has spent £4m developing the equipment, and the system has undergone a rigorous testing process, involving both UK and European standards institutes, to ensure absolute food safety.

Greenstar WES founder and managing director James Donaldson said: “As far as we know, we are the world’s first company doing this, taking plastic bottles back and selling the plastic from them again commercially.

“We installed the equipment last April but have been going through test after test and gaining accreditation. It is a slow process but we have satisfied everyone who has come to see us.”

The first food-grade plastic to be sold commercially was produced for supermarket food trays last August, and the company recently won a major contract to supply a cosmetics company.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .