Argos corporate news
Green is go, for catalogue recycling roll-out
28 July 2006
Following the success of the North West of England trial earlier this year, leading multi-channel retailer Argos is rolling out a major recycling initiative to coincide with the launch of its new Argos Autumn/Winter catalogue this weekend.
The scheme will be implemented throughout the UK and ROI to all 668 Argos stores. With as many as 4 million people a week visiting the store network the recycling potential is huge, especially at catalogue launch time.
The roll-out is part of Argos's long-term commitment to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. Argos has an agreement with UPM Kymmene who will recycle its old catalogues and will pulp the catalogue paper to turn most of it back into newsprint for the UK's national and regional papers. This means that potentially an old catalogue can be recycled and re-read as a newspaper the following week!
Customers can also put old catalogues into their kerbside paper collection schemes run by the local authorities or take them to local recycling banks in those areas that don't currently have kerbside collection schemes.
In 2003 a schools survey funded by Argos parent company GUS, identified that about 30% of catalogues were currently being recycled. The Argos catalogue is one of the largest printed products in Europe, consuming over 90,000 tonnes of paper each year. They aim to get a much higher rate of return of old catalogues, either through its stores network or via local recycling schemes, to reduce the volume of paper going to landfill.
Argos ensures that all the pulp used to make its paper for the catalogue comes from legal sources in Europe. For 2006, over 50% of the pulp that is used to make the paper comes from certified forests and 14% comes from post consumer recycled sources. They are working hard to increase the certified and recycled content of the catalogue every year.
Laurence Singer, Argos corporate responsibility manager said: "The launch of our new catalogue is an excellent time for customers to come to the store, pick up a new catalogue and dispose of their old one with the comfort of knowing that the old catalogue will be recycled." Laurence added: "There will many customers who find local recycling points and kerbside collections equally convenient and we also encourage the use of these facilities to ensure catalogues do not end up in landfill."
