A BELFAST recycling firm has set its sights on delivering £150m each year for the Northern Ireland economy.
Bryson Recycling, which processes recyclables collected from 60 per cent of homes in the north and delivers services to over 1.8 million households across the UK, is targeting further expansion in the company's 25th year.
Speaking at a special anniversary event, Bryson Recycling director, Eric Randall said the company has experienced a "huge" increase in demand for its services this year - processing an extra 200,000 plastic items a day at its Mallusk site.
“Homeowners are more aware of the damage that plastic products are causing to the environment," he said.
"This increased awareness about plastics, largely due to the shocking images showing the impact of plastics in our seas in David Attenborough’s Blue Planet, has encouraged people to recycle more and offered us the opportunity to boost recycling rates."
Mr Randall said local firms are also benefitting from the more environmentally conscious homeowner, which in turn, is good news for the Northern Ireland economy.
"Bryson Recycling has championed the local circular economy approach to recycling in Northern Ireland with over 80 per cent of materials collected going to local reprocessing companies, which sustains around 1000 jobs locally. Northern Irish industry leaders Huhtamaki, Cherry Pipes and Encirc all reprocess materials collected by Bryson.
"This collaborative approach with three reprocessors and a number of councils adds over £100m every year to the Northern Ireland economy and Bryson has ambitions to increase this by a further 50 per cent in coming years."
“The simple reality is that waste impacts everyone and the environment. Our model ensures good environmental outcomes by ensuring that goods are recycled locally, livelihoods are supported and the economy continues to grow," Mr Randall added.
Bryson started recycling in 1993 with the Cash for Cans scheme and is now the largest social enterprise recycler in the UK, employing over 280 staff. The company delivers a wide range of recycling services across Northern Ireland, Donegal and Wales and has recycled over 675,000 tonnes of materials during the 25 years in business. Last year r the firm collected over 64,000 tonnes of materials for recycling, recording a turnover in excess of £13.5m
