Britvic has announced that it will be providing €5.8 million (£5 million) of investment support for the construction of new rPET manufacturing facilities at Esterform’s site in Sherburn in Elmet, UK.
The soft drinks company said that it has entered into a long-term agreement with Esterform Packaging Limited for the supply of recycled plastic (rPET) in Great Britain and Ireland.
The company, whose brands include Ballygowan, MiWadi, Club, TK and Fruit Shoot outlined that moving forward it is planning to reduce the use of virgin PET in its packaging and will opt instead to increase the levels of rPET.
"At Britvic, we are committed to making a positive difference to the world around us and our partnership with Esterform is another important step forward for our business and our efforts to reduce the environmental impacts of plastic waste," said Trystan Farnworth, group sustainability director, Britvic.
To date, Britvic said that it has removed more than 1,400 tonnes of primary plastic from its supply chain since 2017, 100% of its PET bottles, glass bottles and cans are recyclable, and the company is a founding signatory of the UK Plastics Pact.
Carbon Footprint
Founded in Liverpool in 1999, Esterform's manufacturing technology will be powered by 100% renewable energy sources and is expected to be operational by quarter four in 2020, the company said.
The packaging company's is the UK’s largest independent converter of PET and has supplied Britvic for 15 years.
Referring to the new agreement with Esterform Farnworth stated: "It provides us with a secure supply of rPET at a time when the resource is scarce in the UK, while sourcing it from this country rather than abroad has clear benefits for our carbon footprint.”
2019 Preliminary
Revenue for the group showed an 1.4% increased to €1,804 million (£1,545 million), its latest financial results show.
According to the British company it's 2019 preliminary results, which were published today showed that its adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest, tax) increased by 4.4% to €250 million (£214.1 million).
"In 2019 we have increased revenue, adjusted margin and EBIT, as well as significantly improving free cashflow generation," said Simon Litherland, chief executive officer.
The British company's key brands showed a 'strong' performance during the period with both Britvic and PepsiCo brands in revenue growth
"Our commercial execution, innovation agenda and revenue management continue to deliver results," he stated.
"Our transformational business capability programme is now complete - and importantly forms a key part of our broader commitment to building a more flexible and sustainable business model going forward."
However, the company's profit after tax decreased by 31%, as the British soft drink company grappled with a new law in France and wrote down the value of some assets in the country.
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
