ARTICLE

On track to zero-carbon

16 January 2015

With help from Biffa's waste innovations, Arla Foods' Aylesbury is on its way to becoming a zero-carbon milk processing facility

 
Arla Foods and Biffa have worked together for a number of years, but the relationship moved into a new phase during the development of the company's flagship plant, when Biffa put forward a radical proposal to help Arla Foods achieve ambitious environmental targets.
 
The company's environmental plans include zero waste to landfill, incorporating 50% recycled plastic in its milk bottles by 2020, and ensuring 30% of the dairy's energy comes from renewable sources by 2020.
 
Kathy Atkinson, EHS co-ordinator at Arla Foods, explains: "We want to be industry leading in everything we do; an ethos that applies to waste management. Biffa showed a real understanding of what we're aiming to achieve and we're delighted with its innovative solutions, which are already starting to produce fantastic results."

Background

 Daryl Grace, Biffa’s corporate account manager, explains:"Arla Foods is committed to using advanced process technologies and renewable energies, so I began to investigate what was out there and they were impressed with what they saw. We’ve now been able to give them low-carbon energy generation and closed-loop recycling.”

Biffa recommended the installation of a number of in-plant innovations, including a machine that crushes milk bottles, feeding milk to an anaerobic digestion tank and plastic to a baler. The plastics are collected and recycled by Biffa Polymers’ facility in Redcar. Biffa then supplies the recycled plastic to a milk bottle manufacturer which, in turn, supplies to Arla Foods, delivering a closed-loop system.

Other tools introduced by the Biffa team include a bin lifter constructed from stainless steel to protect it from the corrosion caused by milk acidity, large-scale source separation of milk bottles; and a fully galvanised plastics baler and card/polythene baler.

Biffa's approach

•  Biffa's contract managers work to achieve Arla's specific environmental goals

•  By applying industry-specific knowledge and advanced technology, Biffa has been able to recover maximum value from waste streams, delivering additional benefits to the customer

•  Biffa has introduced circular economy thinking to the Aylesbury plant, securing closed loop recycling initiatives and ultra low carbon renewable energy generation through on-site anaerobic digestion

•  Biffa's zero waste ambitions are directly aligned to those of Arla Foods, meaning they have shared priorities of addressing the top of the waste hierarchy and delivering closed loop recycling.


 
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