Feature Guest Expert : Catherine Weetman (UK)

We were delighted to meet with renowned speaker, university lecturer, facilitator, author and expert in Circular Economies, Catherine Weetman based in the UK this month. In her book A Circular Economy Handbook for Business and Supply Chains, Weetman outlines how growing global consumption presents fantastic business opportunities, but these are blocked by our current linear systems (take some materials, make a product, use it and then throw it away) – we are depleting our ressources and overloading the living systems we depend on. The circular economy unlocks this problem by decoupling resources from consumption. Engaged businesses are re-thinking product design, material choices, business models and supply chains. Weetman’s book is a must-read for anyone who wants to apply the circular economy today. You can purchase a copy of the book here: A Circular Economy Handbook for Business and Supply Chains. Furthermore, LUP is very excited to be able to bring to you a six part series featuring Weetman in our upcoming newsletters/blogs with this inspiring expert on circular economies, highlighting a different topic each month. To begin the series this month, we would like to firstly introduce the concept of circular economies with Weetman’s 2017 talk at the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) in the UK : Our special thanks to CILT in the UK as well for providing the video content.

New Listings

Plastic Wheel Covers (Australia) In other news, last month we had a listing for some plastic wheel covers in Australia which were previously ending up in landfill. We are delighted to advise that our clients were able to find a solution for the 100 to 150 tonnes per annum of this plastic waste extremely quickly to re-purpose these, officially closing the loop and avoiding landfill. LUP was also able to source a few potential buyers that could take them, which highlights strong market demand for recycled plastics Bread Waste (Australia & Netherlands) Between March and April this year, we had previously listed bread waste available across Australia (in aggregate to over 10,000 tonnes per annum) which LUP had found potential buyers for. The challenge however, was the inability to find a viable logistical solution to transport the bread from various dispersed locations across the country within the limited life span before it would turn mouldy to the buyers. Through our discussions with our feature guest expert Weetman this month, Weetman highlighted an alternate solution for bread waste currently being utilised in the Netherlands, Europe for the issue of transporting bread waste to avoid landfill. The use of anaerobic bread waste bins, which composts the bread into fertiliser or to generate biogas. The bins also helped tackle the country’s rodent issue.

“Bread accounts for around a quarter of domestic food waste in the Netherlands, according to a government-commissioned 
report, with the average citizen throwing out 9.2kg worth per year.” More information can be found in the Guardian newspaper article from June 2017 by clicking here.

Pallets (Australia) Since our launch last November, LUP has been actively seeking solutions for imported pallets into Australia. In Australia, we are in a unique position where the local pallet sizes for use in domestic transport eg. CHEP or LOSCOMS, are different from the imported pallet sizes which are often utilised as one-way pallets in order to fit into shipping containers. One option LUP has been able to obtain for the imported custom pallets we have actively listed is to potentially backload these and ship them back to the suppliers overseas which may be cheaper than producing new pallets plus the current disposal costs. This is something LUP is actively exploring on behalf of our clients. In the meantime, we are also scheduled to meet with local pallet recyclers and a local council in Victoria, Australia to obtain some guidelines around the separation of pallets which could potentially be re-sold and recycled in order to try to improve the rate of pallet recycling and what ends up in landfill. Stay tuned for further updates…

Active Listing: Labels backing paper

Labels Backing Paper The backing paper/release liner left over once labels are peeled off. The labels backing are commonly made of paper and silicone coated otherwise plastics such as Polypropylene (PP) or Polyester (PET) based liners. These liners are currently ending up as waste from warehouses & distribution centres as there is no current solution we are aware of to recycle this in Australia. LUP has access to approximately 20-40 tonnes of this per month which currently also ends up in landfill.

Have a listing you want to register with LUP Global?

Then register it here. As we mentioned on our launch night, we may not be able to find a recipient or a supplier it straight away, but as our network grows, invariably the connections will come. Having your listings registered means we’re always on the look out to bring the right people in! You can get in touch with is via info@lupglobal.com. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

News Corner

World Environment Day 2018: ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’ June 5 is marked by the United Nations as World Environment Day, a day set aside since 1974 to promote “worldwide awareness and action for the protection of our environment.” This year’s theme is “beat plastic pollution.”. A topic which particularly important, especially when you check these photos… Read more. Woolworths to stop selling plastic straws WOOLIES sells 134 million of these common items every year, but will completely ban them in response to customer pressure. Read more.

Road built with plastic bags and glass in Australian-first Soft plastics from approximately 200,000 plastic bags and packaging, and 63,000 glass bottle equivalents will be diverted from landfill to construct a Victorian road in an Australian-first trial. Read more.

What is going on for LUP this month ? New listings, a case study in paint re-purposing and our participation at Infiniti Sprint … This newsletter will let you know everything !

Infiniti – A Sprint Designed to Accelerate Circular Business (Melbourne, Australia)

In the last weekend of April, LUP was honored to have been able to provide mentorship & partake on the judging panel of Infiniti Sprint. Infiniti Sprint was an event designed by the Common Purpose Collective held at IBM studios in Melbourne, Australia.

A total of seven teams worked tirelessly over the weekend to test the business viability of ideas that contributed to the goal of responsible consumption and drive circularity in Australia. The ideas ranged from recycling used nail polish, modular furniture, to recycling and re-designing fashion trends, with the final winners of the Sprint presenting a wonderful concept around recycled coffee cups using a holistic approach by incorporating technology & incentives for returning used cups.

Congratulations to Kirill, Ira & Nick on their winning start-up concept and we wish them all the very best with their innovative and excellent business idea.

 

Paintback : A Case Study in Paint Re-Purposing in Australia

We were delighted to meet with Karen Gomez, Chief Executive of Paintback Ltd in Melbourne, Australia this month to discuss the amazing work they do and how they were able to set-up and provide a national solution for managing unwanted paint across Australia.

Established in 2016, Paintback is a world-first in its design, industry-led initiative designed to divert unwanted paint and packaging from ending up in landfill & waterways across Australia.

As an independent not-for-profit organisation, Paintback is funded through a 15 cents per litre levy on eligible paint products of between 1 to 20 litres. Alongside the responsible disposal of waste paint Paintback are committed to researching new ways to repurpose unwanted paint materials.

The process works by having households and trade painters taking their unwanted paint and packaging to a Paintback site where Paintback picks up the waste paint and transports it from the collection point for treatment. The packaging and waste liquid are separated, the containers recycled. Then the waste paint is treated in a number of ways including energy recovery for solvent and liquid/solid separation for water-based paint, significantly minimising landfill.

More information on this inspiring Australian business can be found at https://www.paintback.com.au/.

 

New Listings

Plastic Wheel Covers
We have a new listing for plastic wheel covers. These plastic wheel covers may be the same material used to manufacture bumper bars. They are located Australia wide & open to both Local & International solutions. Approximately 100 to 150 tonnes per annum is currently being sent to landfill.

Labels Backing Paper
The backing paper/release liner left over once labels are peeled off. The labels backing are commonly made of paper and silicone coated otherwise plastics such as Polypropylene (PP) or Polyester (PET) based liners. These liners are currently ending up as waste from warehouses & distribution centres as there is no current solution we are aware of to recycle this in Australia. LUP has access to approximately 20-40 tonnes of this per month which currently also ends up in landfill.

Listing update: Bread

Over the past couple of months, LUP has been engaged in trying to re-home several thousand tonnes of bread waste per annum that currently ends up in landfill across Australia.

The current update on this project is logistics is unfortunately posing as our biggest challenge. This is due to the limited shelf life of the bread (requiring to be transported within 4 days after taken off retail shelves) and the considerably dispersed volumes spread out over hundreds of locations across the country.

Based on the various locations, unfortunately the current volumes don’t enable us to organise dedicated transport just for the bread to be consolidated and/or delivered to the several potential buyers we have found across Australia.

As we would still like to find a long-term & sustainable solution for bread waste across Australia, if LUP was able to consolidate additional bread waste we may be able to organise dedicated transportation runs so the bread can get to these secondary sources that could re-use it instead of ending up in landfill.

If you or someone within your network currently has access to wasted bread across Australia, please do reach out to us to see if we could potentially collaborate in order to work out a sustainable solution for wasted bread.

Active Listings: Wooden Skids & Timber Dunnage

Imported pallets are still a massive landfill issue in Australia. We are still trying to find sustainable ways to close the loop for imported timber pallets / skids and timber dunnage. Please contact us if you can find a use for these or if you know of someone who may be able to take them.

 

Have a listing you want to register with LUP Global?

Then register it here. As we mentioned on our launch night, we may not be able to find a recipient or a supplier it straight away, but as our network grows, invariably the connections will come. Having your listings registered means we’re always on the look out to bring the right people in![/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]You can get in touch with is via info@lupglobal.com.

Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Farewell to our Co-founder: Scott Ko

It is with great sadness that we announce the departure of our beloved Co-founder Scott Ko from the LUP Global team. Scott has been an invaluable part of the team and has played a formative role in getting us to where we are today. Scott’s reason for leaving is so he can focus on the other business he founded that is starting to take off: ColourSpace (www.colourspace.gallery). His vision? To change the way people engage with art. His business transforms offices into pseudo-galleries by changing the artwork on a seasonal basis, keeping the work environments dynamic with fresh art. With all artwork sourced from local artists, ColourSpace helps business engage with art, whilst also helping the local arts community; almost like an Uber for art! We wish Scott and ColourSpace much success in the future and look forward to keeping up to date on the developments of this exciting Australian business. If you’re interested in what he’s doing and want to find out more, we encourage you to reach out to him directly on scott@cs.gallery.

Infiniti: A Sustainability, Business, and Technology Design Sprint (Melbourne Event)

LUP is delighted to be a part of the upcoming Melbourne (Australia) innovation event: Infiniti Sprint. Held across the weekend of Friday 27 to Sunday 29 April 2018, this unique event is a design sprint where a total of 100 participants (individuals or teams) can test the business viability of ideas that contribute towards an outcome of ‘responsible consumption’, and thus drive circularity in Australia. This event will be hosted at IBM Studios Melbourne, and the winning teams (maximum of five multi-disciplinary members) will be rewarded with a small funding prize. For a lucky few, their ideas will be fast tracked, leveraging expert support / mentorship to move the idea to an accelerator-ready stage. LUP will be providing mentorship and guidance – particularly with a focus on supply chains – to the participating teams over the weekend. If you’re interested in coming to this event, go visit: www.infinitisprint.com. For a bit more incentive, LUP Global network members will also receive 50% off the event registration. This is the promo code: SMART.

Listing update: Bread

Last month we had a listing for approximately 2,500 tonnes of edible bread that ends up in landfill every year. Whilst the listing has since expired (and hence removed), it pushed us to research what secondary uses for bread were available. LUP reached out through our network and contacted a wide range of potential solutions including but not limited to food and drink manufacturers, other bakeries (to research their solutions), livestock producers, farms, chemical companies, cleaning companies, industry bodies, and charities. We were fortunate to find a range of potential buyers and solutions for dealing with bread wastage, and are currently working to implement solutions to close the bread “loop”. Still, we’re always on the lookout for more opportunities, so if you’d still like to get involved, please contact us! There is a public expiry date of 13 April for this listing, and we are taking all immediate expressions of interest. If you know any organisation/s who you believe would benefit from this valuable input, please contact us today.

Wasted: The Story of Food Waste

Leading directly on from the bread, Wasted: The Story of Food Waste is a documentary produced by Anthony Bourdain and highlights some shocking facts about food waste around the world. According to the film, one third of food produced is never eaten and over 90% of wasted food in the USA currently ends up in landfill, with bread and grains one of the largest food waste streams. In the UK alone, 900,000 tonnes of bread is wasted annually. If you haven’t had the chance to see this film yet, check it out! Not only do they illustrate the shocking amount of waste across the food supply chains, they also provide innovative and pragmatic solutions, including an interesting way of defining ‘food waste’ when viewed as a pyramid. 1. For Human Consumption 2. Then Livestock 3. For Energy 4. Compost 5. And finally Landfill Here’s a trailer for the film. For those in Australia, you can watch the movie on demand here.

Active Listings: Wooden Skids & Timber Dunnage

Imported pallets are still a massive landfill issue in Australia. We are still trying to find sustainable ways to close the loop for imported timber pallets / skids and timber dunnage. Please contact us if you can find a use for these or if you know of someone who may be able to take them.

Have a listing you want to register with LUP Global?

Then register it here. As we mentioned on our launch night, we may not be able to find a recipient or a supplier it straight away, but as our network grows, invariably the connections will come. Having your listings registered means we’re always on the look out to bring the right people in! You can get in touch with is via info@lupglobal.com. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.