McDonald’s sign litter agreement to clean up city sites
Cllr Lisa Trickett, Cabiinet Member for Cleaner Streets, Recycling and Environment, and Martin Braham, McDonald’s franchisee at the Bordesley Green restaurant.
McDonald’s today (20 July 2016) signed a voluntary agreement with Birmingham City Council, promising to pick up litter in the streets immediately around its 18 restaurants in the city.
The fast food firm is the latest business to sign up to this pledge, and as part of this McDonald’s restaurants across Birmingham carry out regular litter picks in their local area to help keep it free from related rubbish.
Under these voluntary agreements the city council works in partnership with businesses to help deliver one of the top priorities for Birmingham – cleaner, greener streets
First introduced in January 2014, these provide a framework for firms to identify when and where litter problems arise, and a partnership with the city council to work out how best to solve these issues.
Wetherspoons signed the first voluntary agreement with the city council, and since then 460 businesses across the city, including 18 McDonald’s sites, have made this pledge.
Cllr Lisa Trickett, Cabinet Member for Clean Streets, Recycling and Environment, said: “I think it’s fantastic that McDonald’s are leading by example, taking pride in their local neighbourhood and encouraging their customers to do the same.
“We know cleaner, greener streets is a top priority for citizens and businesses in Birmingham and working in partnership with businesses and the communities they serve will help make the city as attractive and welcoming to all visitors”
Cllr Trickett and Martin Braham, a McDonald’s franchisee who runs three restaurants in Birmingham, signed the agreement at the Bordesley Green restaurant, along with six other franchisees and a McDonald’s representative who between them run more than 90 restaurants across the West and East Midlands.
Under these agreements businesses pledge to reduce or minimise packaging at point of sale, display anti-littering messages, pick up litter in their immediate vicinity or provide a bin, and ensure they have a valid trade waste contract in place.
McDonald’s franchisee Martin Braham said: “One of our key priorities is to ensure that the local communities we serve remain free of litter and continue to be enjoyable places to live, work and visit. We do have an important role to play in making the area a better place which is why we’re delighted to sign up to this agreement with Birmingham City Council.
“When businesses and the community come together to tackle local issues we are able to achieve so much more and this initiative is a perfect example of this. I’m really pleased that all of the franchised and company-owned restaurants in Birmingham have made this commitment to keep their local areas litter free.”
For more information on how businesses can sign up to voluntary street litter agreement call Environmental Health on 0121 303 6007 (not media calls) or visit their webpage at www.birmingham.gov.uk/env-health-contact
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Voluntary Agreements
A voluntary agreement is designed to help businesses, local authorities and other organisations to reduce the incidence of outdoor food and drink litter, as well as waste that becomes litter, in the local environment.
These agreements, which aim to encourage businesses to take responsibility for managing litter in the community, are built around four key elements:
- Reducing / minimising packaging at point of sale
- Displaying anti-littering signs or messages
- Have a valid trade waste contract in place and control their waste
- Pick up litter in the immediate vicinity of their business and/or provide a bin
This provides a framework for businesses to firstly identify how, when and where their worst litter problems arise, and secondly to work out the best ways in partnership with other agencies to solve these issues.
McDonald’s
McDonald’s is committed to working with local communities to tackle litter having done so for over 30 years since introducing Litter Patrols in the UK in 1982.
In addition to larger scale litter events, McDonald’s staff patrol the streets around their restaurants at least three times a day to collect all litter that has been discarded, regardless of its origin.
More information on McDonald’s commitment to the environment can be found here: www.mcdonalds.co.uk/ukhome/Ourworld/Environment.html
