SAMWORTH BROTHERS CASE STUDY: Plastic Awareness Week

CASE STUDY:

Plastic Awareness Week

THE BRADGATE BAKERY 4R TEAM ORGANISED AN ONSITE PLASTIC AWARENESS WEEK with a variety of activities that engaged OVER 200 EMPLOYEES WITH THE 4R PLAN Samworth Brothers are doing a lot to reduce our plastic use and help the industry transition to more sustainable packaging practices. Bradgate Bakery has taken this a step further through their Plastic Awareness Week by engaging and educating their colleagues on how to reduce their own plastic use.

Used-Plastic Games A skittle competition was one of the main activities, put together using seven used-plastic bottles and a ball made from cling film. It showed people that even though you might buy single-use plastic products, there are ways in which they can be reused.

Each person had three throws, and after each throw, the bottles were propped back up. The highest scorer for the competition was Danny Lovegrove from Prep! He was awarded a box of chocolates for winning.

Case Study: Plastic Awareness Week

Plastic Pledges Colleagues were also asked to sign pledges to commit to achievable actions that they can take on to reduce their plastic impact, doubling up as a method of introducing and educating what they can do individually at home or at work.

Everybody who filled out a pledge card received a reusable cotton bag with the 4R logo. Intended to provide solutions to help lower their plastic usage while shopping and spread awareness of Samworth Brother targets.

222

plastic reduction pledge cards were filled

181 people 111 people 108 people 121 people Pledged to say no to single use plastic bags

Pledged to say no to plastic bottles

pledging to go plastic free for lunch or dinner

pledged to use a reusable mug w h e n g e t t i n g a ta k e away h o t d r i n k

Information about plastic pollution was also shared through a “Pesky Plastic Quiz”. There were 12 questions challenging people’s knowledge of how much plastic the world produces and how much of it pollutes the Earth. Members of the 4R team were on-hand to share the answers and discuss the issues raised by the quiz to ensure people had all the facts.

Over 100 people took the quiz, however, only one person scored 12 out of 12. This shows how complicated the single-use plastic issue is and how confused consumers are on what they can do to reduce their use and have an impact.

With over 100 people partaking in the quiz, only one person managed to score 12/12 Partners in Plastic Additionally, Coveris, who produce the sandwich skillets that Samworth Brothers use, attended one of the days to educate people on how they are currently developing a plastic-free bio-degradable skillet. This type of innovation has the potential to drastically reduce the amount of plastic waste Samworth Brothers products produce and further our sustainability commitments throughout our supply chain.

Plastic Awareness Week was a great success and sparked employee engagement on the 4R Plan and motivated individuals on what they can do to take responsibility in making things happen. Including external speakers from the supply chain showed that we are all working together to do good things and that everyone’s contribution is valued.

Throughout the year, Bradgate Bakery will look at how they can reduce, reuse, recycle and recover our plastic on site, highlighting waste figures and recognising engaged employees as 4R Heroes for moving forward with the 4R Plan.

Find out more about the 4R Plan, our goals, targets and how our sites are putting it into action on the 4R Hub

www.4rhub.co.uk

Case Study: Plastic Awareness Week

Pesky Plastic Quiz