Memorandum from The Co-operative Group
(Waste 75)
INTRODUCTION
1.1 The Co-operative Group is the UK's largest
mutual retailer. It is the fifth largest food retailer, the third
largest network of community pharmacy branches, the number one
provider of funeral services and the largest independent travel
business and one of the largest commercial farmers in the United
Kingdom. It also has strong market positions in banking and insurance.
The Group employs over 120,000 people, has three million members
and around 4,900 retail outlets.
1.2 The Co-operative Group's contribution
to this inquiry is predominantly as a food retailer, but we are
also committed to reducing waste on our farms.
— The Co-operative Food is the largest
independent convenience store operator in the UK. This year, The
Co-operative Group announced its completion of the acquisition
of the Somerfield supermarket chain. The combined food business
now operates around 3,000 grocery stores throughout the UK with
over 17 million customer visits each week.
— The Co-operative Farms is the one of
the largest commercial farmers in the UK, with over 10,000 hectares
of land in ownership in England and Scotland and farming a further
20,000 hectares on behalf of our other landowners. The Co-operative
Farms produces food that is sold in our food stores under the
brand name "Grown by Us". Produce sold varies according
to the season and location of the farms.
1.3 The Co-operative Group welcomes the
opportunity to provide evidence to the Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs Committee as part of its re-opened inquiry into the Waste
Strategy for England 2007.
2. GENERAL COMMENTS
2.1 In 2007 The Co-operative Food launched
its Food Ethical Policy consultation; this was a first for UK
retail and the world's largest consumer poll on ethics. Over 100,000
of our member owners came forward to give their backing to a range
of ethical commitments. The vast majority, some 97% of all respondents,
agreed that we should seek to reduce waste. This provided clear
indication that waste reduction is a key priority for our customers
and members.
2.2 The Co-operative Group's overall approach
to waste management focuses on waste reduction (both internally
and in terms of packaging passed on to customers), increasing
reuse and recycling opportunities, improving the biodegradability
of waste and the provision of finance for more sustainable waste
management options.
2.3 Better waste management is a very clear
priority for our business. The Co-operative Group have been a
signatory to the voluntary Courtauld Commitment since 2005. We
are involved in discussions on the next phase of Courtauld and
its proposed targets, Courtauld II, which will run from 2010 to
2012.
2.4 The majority of the Group's waste outputs
are associated with The Co-operative Food.
3. ANNUAL FOOD
WASTE LEVELS—ENGLAND
AND WIDER
UK
3.1 As a family of businesses, we report
total waste levels across all of our businesses (this includes
packaging waste and operational waste). In 2008, we reported 78,973
tonnes of waste—this was a reduction on the previous year
of approximately 5%. This occurred in spite of an increase in
year-on-year sales of 15% and a fast-growing business.
3.2 The Co-operative Group is a business
that operates UK-wide. We have not, to date, disaggregated our
waste levels into units as defined by devolved administrations.
The environmental impact of waste is not confined to one nation
or another, and whilst we welcome the waste reduction schemes
of the devolved areas of the United Kingdom, we would caution
against different regulatory schemes.
3.3 Greater collaboration at all levels,
including local Government, would instead ensure more coherence
for businesses that are seeking to minimise their waste outputs.
This approach will ensure that waste is dealt with more cost-effectively.
4. AVOIDING WASTE
— Packaging is much reduced over the
past two years—we have achieved a 22% reduction on our own-brand
packaging, as verified by WRAP. We have our own Packaging Policy
for own-brand food, which prioritises packaging reductions and
governs acceptable packaging materials based on food safety and
environmental concerns.
— We have cut waste to landfill to
less than 50%. In 2008 we did landfill c31,500 tonnes, of which
it is estimated that 13,000 tonnes was food waste.
— Principles are being developed in
relation to promotions—the first choice for perishables
is deep discounting not BOGOFs or TWOFFERS.
— We have reduced use of single-use
carrier bags by 65% across our food retail estate compared with
2006.
— In 2009, we became the first food
retailer to include storage instructions for fruit and vegetables
on our bags for loose fresh produce to help tackle the problem
of growing household waste.
— We have closely examined waste in
our distribution system. This included stock issued to stores
for reduced price sale (not on promotion) or written off at depot
because it was near the end of life. This review has resulted
in wastage levels being reduced by over 30%, albeit in terms of
cash value, and in improved control on an ongoing basis.
5. WHAT HAPPENS
TO THE
WASTE THAT
WE GENERATE?
5.1 In 2008, 51% of The Co-operative Group's
waste outputs were recycled or reused—this includes back-of-store
recycling of plastic and cardboard, recycling of waste cooking
oil into biofuel, and closed-loop recycling of paper from our
offices into bathroom tissue and kitchen towel. This was an increase
on the previous three years.
6. WHAT HAPPENS
TO OUR
FOOD WASTE?
6.1 As mentioned above, in 2008, we sent
to landfill approximately 13,000 tonnes of food. However, this
is not the only route for food waste.
6.2 We have investigated the use of alternative
waste management technologies, such as in-vessel composting and
anaerobic digestion for non-animal by-product food waste from
The Co-operative Food.
6.3 A trial has been carried out in the
Nottingham area. This sought to evaluate the concept of backhauling
food waste from stores to depot, where the waste is consolidated
with a view to determining the volume of waste and whether anaerobic
digestion was a viable proposition. The trial proved that money
could be saved if this route of waste handling was adopted. We
are also considering composting as a possible way to manage waste.
6.4 The concept of backhauling waste from
stores to depot is about to be tendered with technologies such
as anaerobic digestion and composting being considered.
6.5 Consumers have been identified as the
largest sources of food waste in the United Kingdom. We therefore
encourage customers to reduce food waste. As noted above, we are
the only food retailer to include storage instructions for fruit
and vegetables on our bags for loose fresh produce. In addition,
throughout 2009, our regional membership teams have held food
waste roadshow events across the United Kingdom to help tackle
the growing problem of household food waste.
6.6 Each event features a community chef,
who cooks a selection of recipes using food items commonly thrown
away, as well as giving tips on food planning and management.
We also encourage staff to attend the events as well as customer
members, so that they can advise customers in-store about food
waste issues and minimise their own food waste at home.
6.7 By the end of 2009, we will have held
40 events across the United Kingdom. So far we have held 28 events
in England and Wales with an average of 100 attendees. Events
in Scotland and Northern Ireland will commence in the first week
of November 2009.
6.8 WRAP Love Food, Hate Waste literature
is available at all of the events, and WRAP representatives have
attended some of the events.
7. REJECTING
PRODUCTS ON
AESTHETIC GROUNDS?
7.1 As one of the UK's largest commercial
farmers, we are acutely aware of the importance of minimising
waste in this way, and seek to make best use of everything we
grow.
7.2 The majority of Co-operative Brand produce
is sold as either class I or II. Where no marketing standard exists
we still work to the principles of the Defra classification system
to ensure that the quality of product reflects what our customers
want to buy.
7.3 Produce sold under the Simply Value
brand (which is our value range) is specified such that with the
exception of progressive rots and moulds, less aesthetically pleasing
examples can be packed. There are a total of nine lines including
potatoes, peppers, apples and citrus.
8. OUR POLICY
ON GIVING
AWAY FOOD
WHICH IS
PAST ITS
SELL-BY
DATE AND
THEREFORE NOT
ABLE TO
BE SOLD
TO CUSTOMERS?
8.1 We are acutely aware of the importance
of preventing food-borne illnesses. We have worked with the Food
Standards Agency on a number of its awareness-raising campaigns
in this area. Giving away food that is past its use by date is
illegal and not something that we would sanction because of the
obvious health risks.
8.2 However, we have historically worked
with the food redistribution charity, Fareshare, to distribute
food still safe and legal for consumption but which, for various
reasons, is not saleable in store.
8.3 We have written to all suppliers advising
them that they may use Fareshare as a route for the disposal of
Co-operative Brand product.
9. WORKING WITH
SUPPLIERS?
9.1 As noted above, we encourage suppliers
to distribute unwanted food to Fareshare.
9.2 In February 2007, we also staged a conference
to communicate the Packaging Policy to 500 own-brand suppliers
and subsequently announced a target to reduce own-brand primary
packaging by 15% by 2010 based on 2006 levels.
9.3 Some citrus fruit from Valencia will
in future be delivered by train in temperature-controlled containers.
This will create a faster distribution route for produce with
less spoilage and a lower carbon footprint.
10. WASTE ON
OUR FARMS
10.1 The farming business has a recycling
centre covering a large area of Lincolnshire, taking in waste
chemical and fertiliser packaging and cardboard. All farm agrochemical
packaging on every farm is recycled.
11. CUSTOMERS
AND RECYCLED
PACKAGING WASTE
11.1 We do not have a central record of
customer recycling facilities at our food stores, but we undertook
a survey in 2006 of over 1,300 stores (approximately 40% of our
current food retail estate) and found the following:
— 102 stores had glass recycling facilities;
— 79 had aluminium recycling facilities;
— 35 had plastic recycling facilities;
and
— 87 had textile-recycling facilities—a
proportion of which is provided by the Textile Recycling for Aid
and International Development (TRAID). Through the use of TRAID
facilities, customers have recycled 122 tonnes of unwanted clothing
since 2005.
11.2 Reverse vending systems are also being
investigated for our stores.
12. COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT—WASTE
WORKS
12.1 In September 2007, The Co-operative
Group opened Waste Works, which is an education facility based
at our Manchester recycling centre (at the head office complex).
It promotes effective waste management, and raises awareness of
wider environmental issues, such as climate change and the use
of renewable energy at The Co-operative Group.
12.2 The Waste Works facility is designed
to be an exemplar of recycling in action. It has tables made from
recycled plastic bottles and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
plywood. It is heated by a biomass boiler run on FSC wood pellets.
The centre is managed by the environmental charity, Waste Watch,
and offers a curriculum-linked education programme to Key Stage
2 pupils (aged seven to 11) and community groups. As of February
2009, there have been more than 7,000 visitors to Waste Works.
13. CONCLUSION
13.1 We know that there is a growing need
from consumers for information about waste reduction measures,
and aim to focus on education through both our food retail stores,
membership teams and Waste Works facility. We have, as a business,
long been committed to reducing our environmental impact, hence
our own internal policies to reduce waste. This is an area of
work that is both challenging and ongoing.
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