Press releases

Last week members of the UK Plastics Pact gathered in London for our 5th Annual Summit. Since we launched the historical Pact in 2018 with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation we have seen progress in the UK act as a catalyst for a global network of Pacts and other voluntary stewardship approaches around the world. A key takeaway from the Summit was that voluntary collaboration across supply chains has accelerated progress, and helped businesses be ahead of the curve when it comes to pending legislative changes around the world.

• WRAP Cymru’s new Welsh Food Waste Routemap shows key interventions necessary to deliver Government’s ambitious target to slash food waste across the supply chain.
• New report shows achieving the target will be difficult and requires concerted, ambitious action across the food supply chain.

Amazon research shows investors reward startups with a firm commitment to sustainability – with more than half of UK investors declining a startup investment opportunity in the last 12 months due to concerns about a company’s sustainability credentials. The news comes as eight startups from the UK are unveiled as participants in the second Amazon Sustainability Accelerator.

With the forthcoming Coronation of King Charles only a few weeks away , Recycle Now and Love Food Hate Waste, part of climate action NGO WRAP, have produced tips worthy of a royal celebration to ensure any street party or gathering to celebrate this historic event is as waste-free as possible.

• On average, every UK household has around 57 items of home textiles – typically including ten towels, eight cushion covers, seven pillows and six bed sheets – but around 21% have lain dormant in storage for the past year.

• WRAP’s latest home textiles longevity report highlights a huge opportunity to maximise on this year’s ‘spring clean’ to use the items we have, pass them on to be reused or recycle these items.

• The report raises awareness of how this can be done, as well as outlining how businesses can design for circularity to allow us all to get the most value out of our homeware.

With Easter just days away, Recycle Now and Love Food Hate Waste, part of climate action NGO WRAP, have come up with some eggcellent tips to help ensure you waste as little as possible this Easter. 

• WRAP, WWF, and eight supermarkets announce unprecedented collaboration to tackle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate impact from UK food and drink sector: Retailer Net Zero CAP.
• UK GHG food emissions fell by 12% between 2015-2020, but the rate of reduction needs to increase by 60% to meet GHG sector target by 2030.
• Without urgent action, the global food system will drive the world beyond 1.5C.

The ‘Let’s Get Real’ film has picked up a Gold Smiley award at the OCFA Charity Film Awards, where it was up against strong contenders from Barts, Scout Association, Samaritans, Diabetes UK, Breast Cancer Now and The Bible Society.

• Two highly anticipated WRAP reports are published today on behalf of UK Government.
• This extensive research and stakeholder engagement informs WRAP’s EPR recommendation to UK Government: no single policy measure is sufficient, and a combination of options is necessary to effectively tackle the impacts of clothing.
• Industry engagement is key to ensuring new policy measures work in harmony with developments in international policy, such as the EU strategy for sustainable and circular textiles.

As the UN meets in New York this week to discuss the urgent action needed on water, WRAP is publishing its first progress report on the Water Roadmap since it was launched in November 2021, supported by leading UK food and drink businesses.