RWM, Europe’s most prestigious resource management show, this week became the world’s first large-scale event to conduct paper cup recycling, thanks to Simply Cups.
To mark this historic moment, our mascot, Cupbert, was given the honour of opening the show, who then broke the world record for the number of selfies.
Peter Goodwin, co-founder of Simply Cups commented;
“This should now set an example for all others events, both trade and consumer, staged in the UK. Since the vast majority of used cups will stay within the confines on the venue it means that they can be easily captured and collected. By using Simply Cups, this will not only improve the sustainability credentials of both the event and the venue but will also reduce waste management costs”.
The event, held at the NEC between 13- 15 September, will attract over 500 exhibitors and more than 13,000 visitors. With each delegate anticipated to buy at least one hot drink during their visit, it is understandable why RWM, and event organisers i2i Event Group, took the issue of cup recycling seriously.
Aside from their number, paper cups quickly fill up bins, due to their voluminous nature, which means waste bins need to be more frequently emptied, thus creating additional cost. By diverting paper cups to specialist recycling containers, general waste bins to fill up far less quickly, and also enables the cups to be properly segregated and then recycled.
RWM has acquired around 70 new specialist cup recycling bins, through Simply Cups member Leafield, which have been dotted around the 3 large halls, with many close to food and beverage points. At the end of the show, the cup bins will be emptied into sacks, collected by Simply Waste Solutions and then sent on to be reprocessed into new materials.
