At British Flowers Direct, our goal is always to let the natural beauty of our stems do the talking. We work tirelessly to reduce the amount of packaging entering our business, and we’re proud to say the majority of our flowers arrive "naked" (completely free of unnecessary wraps and plastics.)
But, as any florist or wholesaler knows, a sustainable business still has a footprint. While we compost everything we can, we are occasionally left with "hard" waste that the compost heap just can’t handle.
So, what happens then?
The 16-Dolav Solution
We don’t believe in "out of sight, out of mind." To stay truly planet-friendly, we’ve partnered with the experts at Harrkenn Recycling in Spalding to ensure our non-compostable waste gets a second life.
Every 3 to 4 months, the Harrkenn team visits us to clear out the essentials that keep a flower business running but eventually wear out. Last Wednesday (March 4th), we waved goodbye to 16 Dolavs full of waste!
The March Pickup: By The Numbers
We filled 16 Dolavs (large industrial pallet bins) for this collection. To put that in perspective:
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Volume: Roughly 9,700 liters of material.
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Scale: That is equivalent to over 40 standard household wheelie bins diverted from landfill in a single day!
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Waste Streams: 4 distinct types—Soft film, hard plastics, broken buckets, and cardboard.
What exactly are we recycling?
It’s not just cardboard boxes. Our recycling program covers the tricky items that often end up in landfills elsewhere:
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Soft Film: The thin plastics that are notoriously hard to process.
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Hard Plastics: Broken buckets that have served us well but can no longer hold water.
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Plant Pots: Cracked or aged pots that are ready to be melted down and reborn.
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Cardboard: The sturdy transit packaging that protects our more delicate local deliveries.
Why This Matters
Being a sustainable business means looking at the full lifecycle of every item that enters our doors. By segregating our waste and ensuring it’s collected by specialists, we’re closing the loop. Those broken buckets today could become the recycled garden furniture or industrial flooring of tomorrow.
A huge thank you to Team Harrkenn for helping us keep our site clean and our conscience clearer. We’re back to doing what we do best: bringing you the freshest British blooms with the smallest possible footprint.