Henley-on-Thames: CleanConscience launches UK’s first hotel amenities recycling initiative

In a UK first for sustainability, recycling initiative CleanConscience has been launched – in partnership with Henley Business School and Henley Conferences – to offer the UK hotel industry a chance to reduce its environmental impact.

"Every day, millions of bars of soap are discarded by hotels worldwide," said a spokesperson for CleanConscience. "The plastic from empty or half-full bottles of hotel toiletries cannot currently be recycled, despite being manufactured from expensive recyclable PET or HDPE. The UK waste industry’s infrastructure is simply unable to capture this waste stream, and these bottles all end up in landfill or are being incinerated."

"Through CleanConscience soap is collected, sorted, sterilised, reshaped and distributed to those in need of sanitation; recovered plastics are baled and sent for recycling; and impact is measured and reported.

"This initiative is assisting the hospitality industry to convert tonnes of waste into a meaningful, sustainable programme that will be embraced by employees and admired by guests."