Pacifica Group and GAP Waste reveal fridge recycling project

A national home services company is partnering with a waste firm on a fridge recycling project.

Pacifica Group is working with GAP Waste to prevent domestic refrigerators being sent to landfill.

Under the terms of their agreement, fridges beyond maintenance and repair will be sent to GAP’s £5.7million Gateshead fridge recycling plant, which can process hundreds of thousands of appliances every year.

Bosses say specialist technology will be used to recycle 99.9 per cent of components, with fridge shells crushed and separated into metal and plastic materials for future use.

Houghton-le-Spring-based Pacifica Group, which works with electrical and domestic appliance manufacturers to provide repair, installation and maintenance services, will be engaging with its clients to support the recycling operation.

Kevin Brown, chief executive of Pacifica Group, said: “We work to keep fridges and other white goods repaired and maintained for as long as possible, but when they reach end-of-life it is important to offer an environmentally-focused solution for their disposal.

“Our ambition is to send absolutely zero product to landfill and this partnership with GAP will go a long way to meeting this strategy and addressing a major issue for UK recycling and the environment.”

Peter Moody, group managing director of GAP, added: “This partnership is vital as it will ensure all refrigeration units, which reach end of life, are effectively recycled with 99.9 per cent of the resulting material being re-used in manufacturing.

“As one of only two plants in the UK with this capability, future-proofed against upcoming EU regulations, we are working hard to build relationships with companies like Pacifica Group to ensure more fridges can be recycled to reduce their impact on the environment.”