Little rubbish stories

Find out how we binned our customers’ waste challenges and got them on the right track.

Here are some customer snapshots to show how Mitie is helping our customers get the most out of waste, and delivering real-world results.

Click on the plus signs to read our little rubbish stories.

Regular deliveries of ten tonnes of bananas were arriving at a supermarket distribution centre in crates. Transferring the produce to the supermarket, and then sending the empty trays back to the warehouse, was creating a lot of waste from transit packaging.

The supermarket was fed up with this waste, so asked for our help. We produced a returnable box for the bananas to travel in. This could be placed straight on the shelf in-store, and then returned for cleaning and re-use. Thanks to our solution, transit packaging was eliminated.

A supermarket goes bananas about waste…

When a doctor treats a patient, their top priority is safety and hygiene. That means the yellow bins you see at hospitals fill up fast – with every single-use plastic imaginable from PPE to packaging and from food to flowers. Of course, some items must be incinerated, but for cash-strapped hospitals this costs 10x more than dealing with general waste.

That’s why we’re helping the NHS see waste as an opportunity to save money with measures like segregating waste on-site. This helps meet sustainability targets and means recyclables and general waste aren’t ending up in a yellow bin or incinerator. Problem sorted.

A doctor seeks a cure for problem packaging…

During the pandemic, we collaborated with a leading real estate company to provide efficient services despite fluctuating occupancy. For example, preventing unnecessary vehicle journeys to empty bins that weren't full, but also timing it right so that bins were never overflowing.

Through our work together, single-use plastic bin liners were removed from the offices and replaced with our trademarked ‘Bin the Bag’ solution. This eliminates the need for bin bags and the associated cost, while also removing a significant amount of plastic waste from landfill.

In total, we tracked 378 service changes on the client’s portfolio between April 2020 and January 2022. Getting waste and environmental services in sync with building use and occupancy saved over £350,000 across the portfolio.

Building the foundations for success…

To bin or not to bin? That is the question. So, when the waste industry innovates, it’s vital that local councils make it crystal clear what can be recycled and reused. Because getting households to sort waste correctly has a huge impact down the line – and in the ground.

Take your everyday milk carton. While millions end up in recycling, many are missing their lids as people are in the habit of throwing them into general waste. We’re helping local authorities educate and communicate what goes in green bins – and working with over 350 suppliers nationally to help councils accept even more types of recyclables.

A council that’s good at talking rubbish…

One of the UK’s largest airports decided that there was too much waste going to ground. With over 18 million passengers each year, it’s little surprise that waste levels were soaring. We committed to help the airport achieve optimal waste practices on-site, including the introduction of a comprehensive recycling process, with an aim to achieving zero waste to landfill.

We analysed the waste data from site and suggested improvements. We sourced local service suppliers to reduce vehicle movements – and therefore carbon emissions. And we bulked most recyclable materials to achieve maximum revenues.

An airport aims to eliminate landfill departures on-site…

Our manufacturing client blends dry mixed spices, which are used as flavourings both commercially, and by home cooks. Traditionally, any food waste material was collected and placed into the general waste stream, which was sent to landfill. However, our client adopted a zero landfill policy and subscribes to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Our solution included placing Dolav boxes next to the general waste bins to segregate food material at source for it to be processed separately. Then, we secured an anaerobic digestion route, in which bacteria breaks down food waste without oxygen, to divert 100% of the waste away from landfill.

Over the first year, we have diverted 481 tonnes of food away from landfill, saving 3,292 tonnes of CO₂ with a cost reduction to the client of over £19,000.

Food that won't fill up landfill…

We were tasked with maximising the number of resources that could be extracted from a medical organisation’s waste streams, ensuring zero waste to landfill.

We helped them reduce their carbon impact, mainly by cutting the amount of waste destined for landfill, which was then converted into energy (fuel, heat and power). We developed a long-term strategy to extract reusable materials from waste streams and use them for new products.

With our help, the organisation has now achieved ‘Zero Waste to Landfill’ accreditation. Their on-site recycling rate now averages 41%. And total contract recycling is 85% through the utilisation of waste going through materials recycling facilities.

Healthy returns after getting to the point…

We’re helping the busy cleaning team at a large visitor attraction to empty bins across the entire site with far greater efficiency. Before, their daily rounds were hit and miss – bins were either empty (a wasted journey) or overflowing (a bad visitor experience).

With sensors on the bins, the team now knows precisely when they’re full. Connected bins also collect data on the hotspots in high footfall areas. Also, the team is processing more waste on-site, so there are fewer lorries and lower emissions in and around the theme park.