Tesco goes fully circular with ready meal Faerch tray-to-tray initiative

In an industry first, Tesco has begun recycling used plastic food trays back into packaging – creating a fully circular solution for its range of core chilled ready meals.

It’s in collaboration with leading packaging manufacturer Faerch, and will see customer-recovered PET trays – collected via European kerbside waste – recycled and converted back into food grade plastic trays.

Tesco’s ready meal trays already contain up to 75% recycled content, predominantly from bottle flake plastic. Via the new Tray 2 Tray by Faerch™ programme, a minimum of 30% recycled tray content will be included in the new core chilled ready meals trays.

A phased rollout is taking place in April across Tesco’s core own brand chilled ready meals. It will ensure that high-quality food-grade PET is kept within the supply chain, rather than being downcycled, and demonstrates that PET packaging from trays can be fully recovered and recycled at an industrial scale.

Adele Kearns, packaging development manager at Tesco, said: “We are determined to close the loop on our packaging – for it to be fully recyclable and contain recycled content wherever possible.

We remain committed to reducing our environmental impact, and helping our customers do the same.”

Ruth Price, strategic sales manager at Faerch UK, said: “We’re delighted to launch this programme with Tesco, an essential initiative that promotes circular food packaging in the economy, and we are committed to working with customers to keep rigid food packaging in the economy and out of the environment.

Fri-Jado extends hot and cold MCC range

In a move that opens up state-of-the-art hot and cold food storage and display solutions to all, equipment manufacturer, Fri-Jado, has announced the expansion of the company’s Modular Convenience Counter (MCC) range, with a unique two-level offering.

Aiming for a complete solution for operators, the units are available in hot and cold functionality, drop-in or standalone, and in a choice of 4, 3, or now, the brand new 2-shelf model. A small footprint and flexible design ensure the range is ideal for any store layout or concept, where a consistent height allows units to be easily positioned inline, either side-by-side or back-to-back.

The new 2-level MCC units offer the highest capacity in a compact footprint of just 600mm x 750mm (w/d). Taking the ultra-slim shelf design found in the larger models in the range, the new 2-level MCC units achieve up to 75% more product visibility, thanks to the transparent sides and top, and up to 30% more display surface. The total shelf surface is as much as 1.13m2 on the MCC 120-2.

The new MCC 2-level range is available in six formats:

● Hot self-serve – for packaged foods.

● Hot self-serve humidified with doors – for packaged and unpackaged hot food.

● Hot self-serve humidified – for unpackaged hot food.

● Cold self-serve – for packaged cold food.

● Cold self-serve with doors – for packaged cold food.

● Cold full-serve – for unpackaged cold food. Available in solid back or pass-through (full serve units in pass-through only), floor-standing model or drop-in models and now in a choice of two, three or four shelves.

“We are delighted to have added 2-level units to the MCC range,” said Gary Thacker, sales director at Fri-Jado UK. “Representing the smallest model in the series, they feature the same great technology and features found in the larger models, but on a truly compact footprint. Delivering maximum food safety, extending shelf life and reducing waste, the MCC 2-level can open up the possibilities of both hot and cold grab-and-go to even the most compact sites.”

Using the latest LED lighting, patented hot blanket technology, unique hot air recirculation (hot models only) and green tech, the MCC range boasts a remarkably low total cost of ownership.

Fully automatic coffee machine with hot chocolate facility with fully integrated milk chiller on a free loaned with maintenance basis (minimum usage of 2 x cases of scale rated coffee beans comprising of 6 kilos each per month). This equates to approximately of 50 cups per day to be used, your break even point is less than 10 cups a day.

Better still, the more cases you buy each month the lower your cost per cup becomes.

This, complete with marketing support, gives you the complete package to enable you to offer a huge array of high quality hot beverages.

This equipment features a simple user-friendly operation for providing consistent beverages that will be fully maintained by our own highly skilled Service Engineers, free of charge**.

Accurate monitoring of cups dispensed gives you total control and it features a simple daily cleaning process therein (prompted by the Touch Screen). This allows you to make the freshest Cappuccinos, Lattes, Flat Whites, Mochas and Hot Chocolate within a minute.

No Capital Outlay, simply a three year contract (easily determined) and only a £750.00 deposit payable which will be refundable upon adherence and completion of the contract. Cost per 8oz cup of coffee as low 23p per cup.

Ideal for Offices, Hair Salons, Sandwich Bars, Coffee Shops and Hotels.