Issue 6 October 2013

Repak Update

Prevent & Save

Repak MeMbeRship newsnew Repak BoaRd memBeRs elected

Repak has concluded elections from among its members to fill six Member Director seats on the board of the company.

The elected Member Directors came from the following categories:

Retail (two Member Directors)

David Duffy,

Managing Director,

National Plastic Packaging Group Ltd

Elected Directors will be appointed for a period of three years, and may seek re-election. No Director may hold office for more than six years.

Packaging manufacturers/convertors/distributors/wholesalers (one Member Director)

Brandholder / Importer (two Member Directors)

Scheduled members (one Member Director)

Jim McNeill,

Managing Director,

Kelloggs Company of Ireland

Ailish Forde,

Public Affairs And Communications Director,

Coca-Cola HBC Ireland

John Curran,

Head of Sustainability,

Musgrave Group

Tony Keohane,

Chairman,

Tesco Ireland

Jim Bird,

Director,

O’Birds Foodmarkets Ltd

Repak licence extended foR fuRtheR five yeaRs

Speaking at the Repak Awards Ceremony in Dublin on Thursday 4th October, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Mr. Phil Hogan, T.D, said:

“Working with Repak, my Department has completed a significant amount of work in the examination of Repak’s application for re-approval. As part of this process, the company has undertaken a complete strategic review of its structures and operations. Following this process there is a far greater understanding on all sides of the nature and extent of the challenges that exist in the regulatory environment and of how these challenges will need to be dealt with in the next five years.

While the re-approval process has been longer than expected it has been a very worthwhile process and, as a result, I am very pleased to announce today that I have re-approved Repak to act as a packaging compliance scheme for a further five years until 2018.

In taking this decision, I am very conscious of the central role that Repak has played in moving Ireland from a very low level of packaging recovery and recycling to being among the top performers in Europe. 2011 was the fifth straight year that Repak exceeded the targets set down in the EU Packaging Directive.”

The announcement was welcomed by the Board of Repak.

The Minister also acknowledged the work being done by Repak under the Prevent and Save programme to reduce and minimise packaging. He added:

“ Repak and its members have been very successful in examining their processes and reducing the amount of packaging used.

Between 2006 and 2011, these efforts have saved approximately 350,000 tonnes of packaging for the companies involved, delivering significant financial savings too. I want to congratulate all the companies and organisations who have played a role in these very important preventative measures.“

Repak MeMbeRship news

Repak’s approval to operate as a compliance scheme for packaging recycling in Ireland has been extended for a further five years.

Minister Phil Hogan speaking at the Repak Awards

Repak Recycling awaRds 2013

The 2013 Repak Awards took place on October 3rd in the Westin Hotel, Dublin. In total there were 13 prizes handed out with the winners comprising:

1. Repak Member of the Year Award - Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited

2. Best Packaging Prevention Initiative Award - Abco Kovex

3. Sustainable Packaging Design Award - Holfeld Plastics

4. Best Practice Award - Hospitality Sector - The Westin Dublin

5. Civic Amenity Site/Recycling Centre of the Year - Meath County Council

6. Kerbside Collection Service of the Year - Clean Ireland Recycling

7. Recovery Operator of the Year - Large - Thornton’s Recycling

8. Recovery Operator of the Year - Small/Medium - Leinster Environmentals

9. Best Schools Battery Recycling by County - Wexford County Council

10.Best Partner for WEEE Collections - Power City

11.Recycling Primary School of the Year - Attymass National School, Co. Mayo

12.Recycling Secondary School of the Year - Mercy College, Inchicore, Dublin

13.Every Can Counts Champion’s Award - Longford County Council

The awards which took place as part of Repak Recycling Week, acknowledge the best waste prevention and waste management efforts of member companies, waste contractors, local authorities and schools around the country.

Repak MeMbeRship news

“2011 was the fifth straight year that Repak exceeded the targets set down in the EU Packaging Directive. In addition, Repak and its members have been very successful in examining their processes and reducing the amount of packaging used.”

- Minister Phil Hogan speaking at the Repak AwardsMicrosoft Operations Ireland won

the Member of the Year Award

Repak Recycling awaRds 2013

Microsoft scooped the top award – Member of the Year – for improving the designs of their product and packaging by making them more sustainable, which included the redesign of their product range leading to a reduction of hundreds of tonnes of packaging material as well as simpler more recyclable packaging material on their products.

Abco Kovex’s ‘Stratos’ strechwrap helped them claim the Best Packaging Prevention Initiative award as this product was responsible for helping to prevent over 200 tonnes of plastic entering the waste stream. At only 11.4 microns thick the material is remarkably efficient when compared to conventional stretchwrap film offering a 46% cost reduction and 67% material reduction.

A new award introduced this year for Sustainable Packaging Design went to Holfeld Plastics. Through the introduction of machinery that ‘supercleans’ recycled polymer pellets, Holfeld now design and produce r-PET trays that are made from up to 90% recycled material, are lighter than equivalent trays in the market and are designed in such a way as to minimize transport and handling requirements.

The hosts for the awards ceremony had a day to remember themselves as The Westin Dublin claimed the Best Practice Award – Hospitality Sector in recognition of it’s excellent waste management structure and focus on prevention projects to reduce the amount of unnecessary packaging in the hotel. The hotel is also a “Platinum Award” winner under the Green Hospitality Awards (GHA) for their practices in environment excellence.

Repak would like to again congratulate all the winners and look forward to seeing everyone back again next year!

Repak MeMbeRship news

Abco Kovex won the Best Packaging Prevention Initiiative Award

Holfeld Plastics won the Sustainable Package Design Award

pRoposed packaging levy will not Be intRoduced

The packaging tax was announced as part of the Government’s Programme for National Recovery 2011-2016 and included a statement that it would “drive a waste reduction programme through an extension of Producer Responsibility Initiative and a levy on packaging after appropriate consultation with industry.

The main objective of the levy was to reduce the amount of discarded packaging while at the same time increasing incentives for increased recycling, reuse and recovery. The concept was that by placing a tax or levy on packaging, less would be produced and consumers would choose products with less packaging, because they would be cheaper than those which were “packaging intensive”.

Repak had expressed serious concerns on the introduction of such measures and their potential effect on the funding of recycling. Fees paid to Repak by Irish producers are a de facto packaging tax. The Repak fee is widely regarded as equitable, and has produced very impressive results. All fees are ring-fenced for packaging recycling, and since Repak was established, packaging recycling rates in Ireland have increased from well below 15% in 1998 to over 70% at present. Ireland is now ranked among Europe’s leading packaging recyclers.

Indeed the amount of packaging placed onto the Irish market has been declining since 2005 when data was first recorded as per the PMCA report launched last year. Repak’s ‘Prevent & Save’ team help member companies optimise their packaging and this has helped reduce the amount of packaging waste which then needs to be dealt with by recovery operators.

The Minister has also rejected the introduction of a deposit-and-return scheme where a surcharge on containers could be recouped by a consumer who returned the empty vessel to a retailer.

To read Repak’s submission on the packaging levy, click here

In July 2012 Mr Hogan tasked the Economic and Social Research Institute with reviewing the issue. Its report recommended against the introduction of the levy.

To read the consultant’s report click here

Repak MeMbeRship news

The Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government has announced that the proposed packaging levy will not be introduced.

Repak MeMbeRship news

Repak Ltd.Red Cow Interchange Estate1 Ballymount Rd.ClondalkinDublin 22

www.repak.iewww.preventandsave.iewww.recyclemore.ie

membershipservices@repak.ie01 4670190