One of the UK’s leading purchasing groups has welcomed Chancellor Phillip Hammond’s budget pledge to look into reducing single-use plastics waste.

Not only does the Regency Purchasing Group agree with Mr Hammond’s pledge but has been actively working to make it happen, as a result of demand from its own members.

Managing Director Alex Demetriou said:

“A number of our members have been particularly concerned about the use of plastic bottles, to the extent that they have told us they do not want to have them anymore.

We looked into this and, as a result, have sourced a number of alternatives including a canned water product, which is re-sealable.

Not only that, but from a recycling point of view, cans can be back in circulation within six weeks, whereas only a third of plastic bottles are recycled.”

Every day in the UK, nearly 40 million plastic bottles are used, and some eight million tonnes of plastic waste is dumped into the sea each year.

It has been widely reported that seaborne plastic waste will outweigh all the fish in the world’s oceans by 2050 if action is not taken to halt the flow of waste plastic.

Mr Demetriou said:

“Single-use plastics is something that should be of concern to everyone, as it is something that everyone can help resolve. We all have a duty to play our part in protecting our planet.

As a company, we are committed to ensuring we meet all our members’ needs as best we can.

When they started telling us they were becoming increasingly concerned, particularly with plastic water bottles, we were determined to find a cost-effective, alternative solution.

We have sourced this canned water product which we have listed with a national wholesaler so that we can start getting it out into the marketplace.”

It’s not the first time that the Regency Group has responded to members’ concerns as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Mr Demetriou said:

“We have done similar work in the past, sourcing products without palm oil following concerns that palm oil plantations in Asia were destroying crucial rainforest habitats, so we are very much at the forefront in this industry of being environmentally aware.

We are fully committed to continuing to help source sustainable products for our members.”

One of the group’s members which had become concerned about the proliferation of plastic was the Zoological Society of East Anglia (ZSEA), which is proudly involved in a number of animal conservation projects and which has become increasingly concerned about the impact of plastic waste on wildlife and the environment.

Martin Dupee, ZSEA’s Director of Operations, said:

“Through operating Banham Zoo and Africa Alive!, as we do, our whole ethos is built not only upon the conservation and welfare of endangered species but also the environment and the world we live in.

Single-use plastic has become a major issue for as long as industry which uses plastic fails to recycle anywhere near the volume being produced.

This, coupled with the indiscriminate littering of plastic, means that waste plastic is heading towards pandemic proportions, which cannot be acceptable.

We made the decision to remove all single-use plastic from our proposition, starting with drinks and disposable cups and straws.

The Regency Purchasing Group has been instrumental in assisting us with this process, in seeking alternatives with a number of suppliers and products, which will result in us making major changes within the coming weeks.”

The Regency Purchasing Group works with more than 2,700 leisure businesses throughout the UK, including some of Britain’s biggest and best known attractions, hundreds of golf clubs, plus pubs, hotels, zoos, farm attractions and many others.