UK plastic recycling line will aid development of green economy, says Business Secretary

At a visit to open a new multi million pound plastic milk bottle recycling line, Business Secretary, Vince Cable, cited Closed Loop Recycling as an example of companies that are “stimulating demand, generating jobs and building the infrastructure for the long term development of the green economy.”

The Dagenham recycler is implementing a major £12 million investment that it says will make it the biggest recycler of milk bottles in the world. It will increase capacity at the plant to 55,000 tonnes per annum and Closed Loop says the expansion will increase its work force by a quarter. 

“This new recycling line will create jobs and growth in a growing green industry,” commented Dr Cable. “Closed Loop Recycling is a fantastic example of how the private investment sector has identified a ground breaking and sustainable green manufacturing technology,” he added. “This type of success story will continue to provide confidence for future investment and underpin continued economic growth.”

Closed Loop Recycling’s Chief Executive, Chris Dow, discussed with Dr Cable the importance of increasing milk bottle and plastic bottle collection to meet demand.

“Recycled milk and water bottles are a massive win for the circular economy,” explained Dow. “We discussed with the Secretary of State and his team how we can provide economic drivers to reprocess these valuable resources in the UK, rather than being exported abroad for recycling. We can then work to influence recycling behaviour across the supply chain, from consumers to brands, in order to increase collection rates.”

Chris Dow also briefed the Secretary of State about a joint green initiative with another company based at the East London Sustainable Industries Park, TEG, a food recycler. “We will be using waste heat from the TEG facility to heat our wash lines for our recycled plastic, making significant carbon and financial savings,” Dow concluded.