FEATURED TOPIC - ORGANICS
Together to zero waste REDUCING FOOD WASTE IS A KEY FOCUS OF COLES’ “TOGETHER TO ZERO WASTE” AMBITION.
From left, Cleanaway Resource Recovery Specialist, Sarah, with Coles Customer Service Manager, Isabelle, and Coles team member, Tanya at the Willawong depackaging plant.
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very year in Australia millions of tonnes of food is disposed of in landfill but leading waste management company, Cleanaway, is working with one of its major customers, Coles, to find a sustainable solution for this waste stream. Although Coles’ preference is to donate unsold, edible food to food rescue organisations such as SecondBite and Foodbank, it has other waste solutions to manage food that cannot be donated. Cleanaway collects packaged food waste from more than 900 Coles supermarkets, Coles Express sites and Coles distribution centres across Australia and removes the packaging, leaving organic material which is
processed into compost for farmers rather than sent to landfill. In addition to the organics service, which has expanded since its inception four years ago, Cleanaway also provides information to Coles team members about recycling, conducts waste audits, and worked with Coles to produce a waste and recycling guide. Wade Mosse, Coles’ Head of Resource Recovery, says the partnership with Cleanaway has helped Coles reduce its tonnage of general waste sent to landfill by 10.5 per cent in the 2021 financial year and increased diversion of solid waste from landfill to 80.6 per cent in the same time. “We’re passionate about reducing our environmental impact and, by
working with customers, suppliers and industry partners like Cleanaway, we aim to increase food security, reduce waste and conserve valuable resources,” Wade says. Andrew Crosling, Cleanaway’s Strategic National Account Manager, says Cleanaway is proud to partner with Coles to help it realise its ambition to become Australia’s most sustainable supermarket and work together towards its ‘Together to zero waste’ aspiration by reducing waste. “At Cleanaway we see all waste as a resource and, by working with our customers like Coles to divert waste from landfill, we are contributing to the creation of a circular economy, which is consistent with our mission
www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 27
