Swiss food and beverage company Nestlé Professional has unveiled the next generation of its Nescafé furniture units, made with a new material that prevents used coffee grounds and waste plastic going into landfill.
Panels on the new units are constructed from the sustainable material, which is made up of 70 per cent plastic waste from the company’s Tutbury factory and 30 per cent Nestlé used coffee grounds.
So far, 200 units have been installed across venues in the United Kingdom (UK) hosting the self-service machines. The company says the initiative has helped reduce supply chain issues, as five separate distribution stages have been removed from the process, cutting lead times from up to 12 weeks to just 10 days.
“I feel we should all be doing what we can to support the environment and sustainability,” says Stuart Fleming, Trade Asset Manager UK and Ireland at Nestlé Professional.
“Despite it not being my role or responsibility, I wanted to see if I could introduce a better solution to house our coffee machines. It’s been fantastic seeing this closed loop solution come to life, where we can now transform our own waste into purpose-built furniture. It’s a very proud moment for our team, business and wider community.”
Julia Jones, Head of Corporate Communications and Sustainability at Nestlé Professional, highlights how the initiative was developed.
“What I love about this initiative is that the idea came from someone in the business who doesn’t work on sustainability at all,” she says.
“It demonstrates how anyone can drive sustainability action and support our customers on their sustainability journey.”
The project was developed in partnership with UK-based manufacturer Regency and the new board is known as the Nestlé Recycled Plastic Coffee Board.
Further Nestlé developments include condiment holders. Once made from plastic, they are now crafted using coffee grounds.
