Journal

The deaths of George Floyd, Ahamud Arbery and Breonna Taylor have sparked Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests across America and globally. Although these protests were an act of solidarity, in many countries – including here in the UK – they were also protesting the long history of racism that still exists within their own institutional structures. Racism is not just […]

Our Director Dom de Ville was featured in an interview in The Construction Index warning that contractors will ultimately pay the price for soaring recycling costs as materials producers, distributors and builders’ merchants will raise their prices. For an industry that works on tight margins and uses a large amount of plastic packaging, contractors will need to engage with their […]

The killing of George Floyd has brought the Black Lives Matter movement into the spotlight once again. It seems – far more than at similar moments in the recent past – people are demanding real change. The social responsibility of businesses must remain high on the agenda. We must take action against the systemic racism and injustices that are deeply […]

Hear from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville on why organisations must prepare for the plastic packaging financial time-bomb , published in Packaging Scotland.

May has seen the continuation of many themes we have been seeing over the past several months. Not just in business, but in our personal lives too. Some of the accommodations we have had to make in this period –in terms of working, commuting, schooling, holidaying, or socialising – may be with us for a long time to come, and, […]

See Foodservice Footprint for ‘Assume plastic plans are dead at your peril?’, an comment piece from Sancroft Director, Felix Gummer, that puts forward the argument that, whilst Covid-19 has put government policies on ice, anyone hoping they will melt away is set for disappointment. This follows on from a piece released earlier this month, also in Foodservice Footprint. Comment: Assume […]

See Construction Manager for ‘Dealing with construction’s plastics time bomb’, an insight piece from Sancroft Chairman, Lord Deben, on how construction firms are about to see compliance costs for dealing with non-recyclable plastic packaging skyrocket, unless they start acting now. https://www.constructionmanagermagazine.com/dealing-with-constructions-plastics-time-bomb/ Also available on p. 10 of the June issue:

See Foodservice Footprint for ‘What’s on hold due to Covid?’, an insight piece from Nick Hughes which quotes Sancroft Director, Felix Gummer, on how now is still the right time for both business and government to drive plastics policy forward. More to follow… What’s on hold due to Covid-19?

See New Food Magazine for ‘Plastic packaging tax: turning negatives into positives’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville, on the potential impacts of incoming plastics and packaging legislation, and what the UK food and beverage industry should do to respond. Plastic packaging tax: Turning negatives into positives

See pp. 23-34 for ‘The ticking clocks’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant Dom de Ville into what the dairy industry can do to prepare for the plastics and packaging financial time-bomb. https://flickread.com/edition/html/5e8db1ef723ee#23

See pp. 63-67 of the May 2020 edition of Rail Professional for ‘Supply chain disruption’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart, on how rail businesses can build stronger, more responsible supply chains.

As expected, the month of April has brought with it significant challenge to many walks of life. The general population has been acclimatising to the “new normal”, and although there are signs of industry successfully adapting to the changing landscape, for many the pressure will not lift for some time yet. A shift in business and working lifestyles has emphasised […]

See Food Manufacture for ‘Plastics and packaging time-bomb: how should the food industry respond?’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville, on what’s required for businesses to reduce their use of plastics and packaging. Dom was also quoted in a second article in Food Manufacture on compliance and a reformed Extended Producer Responsibility system. Financial time bomb […]

See p. 13 of the April edition of Plastics in Packaging for ‘The plastics packaging financial time-bomb’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville, on how skyrocketing plastics compliance costs are forcing companies to rethink their business models. Print only, available through Sayers Publishing Group: https://plasticsinpackaging.com/online/publications/

See pp. 26-27 for ‘What can industry do to prepare for the plastics in packaging financial time-bomb’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville, on how upcoming packaging legislation will heavily impact businesses, supply chains and consumer demand. https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/crain/sustainableplastics_042020/index.php#/p/26

In preparing this month’s newsletter, we thought long and hard about the attention we should give to the impact of Covid-19 on our clients, on investors and the wider business community. While we can say with certainty that impact will be profound and long-lasting, we feel that as businesses and communities are struggling to cope with a landscape that would […]

See Personnel Today for ‘Modern slavery: Why HR should be the champion for all workers’ rights’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart. Modern slavery: Why HR should be the champion for all workers’ rights 

See Packaging News for ‘The financial time-bomb’, an insight piece from our Senior Consultant, Dom de Ville, on rising packaging costs and how this is impacting businesses. Dom de Ville | The financial time-bomb

In the year that the UK leaves the European Union under a premise of being able to shape its own rules and regulations for trade, one common question we are asked is the extent to which business needs to pay attention to new and emerging policy in the area of sustainability emerging from the EU and other parts of the […]

Attention to ESG has hit unprecedented levels among asset managers around the world in only a few short months. ESG itself is nothing new, but what is changing is the now-widespread and rapidly deepening reliance on ESG to demonstrate a more comprehensive approach to risk and opportunity and to secure future access to capital. From private equity houses, through infrastructure […]

See p. 47 of the Winter 2020 issue of Info Magazine for ‘Radical transparency’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart.

See the February 2020 issue of CEO Today for ‘Microsoft’s Carbon Negative Pledge: Is CSR Far More Complex Than We Think?’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart. Microsoft’s Carbon Negative Pledge: Is CSR Far More Complex Than We Think?

See HR Zone for ‘The rise of employee activism: a defining issue for HR in 2020’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart. https://www.hrzone.com/lead/culture/the-rise-of-employee-activism-a-defining-issue-for-hr-in-2020  

See Issue 305 (January 2020) of Governance for ‘Governance in a glass box’, a piece from our Consultant, Pen Stuart. ‘Those that treat supply chain sustainability as an incremental compliance exercise will fail to take a stand and therefore find themselves with a shrinking pool of potential customers and investors as more people filter out brands that lack a clear […]