First week back to work after New Year and within 24 hours we had notice that the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee was releasing the report from its Inquiry into paper cups. The Foodservice Packaging Association (FPA) represents manufacturers of most of the UK’s paper cups and has been closely following this thread, with Government engagement, committee meetings, briefings and policy planning since March 2016. We also work with the Paper Cup Recovery and Recycling Group (PCRRG), which focuses specifically on paper cups (the FPA remit covers all foodservice packaging not just paper cups)
We prepared a statement, issued it on the wire and waited for the phone to ring. It did. On Friday January 5, the Executive Director of the FPA, the Chairman of the PCRRG and key members between them carried out 13 live media (TV & radio) interviews and numerous press interviews. The brief was to focus on the extensive work the industry has done in the past two years and the hugely increased capacity for recycling paper cups in the UK. In fact, capacity now exits to recycle all paper cups used in the UK.
FPA/PCRRG Live media coverage 5 January
The FPA and PCRRG continue to lobby for increased recycling infrastructure funded by the industry through Packaging Recovery Note Reform rather than a ‘latte levy’.
