Planning your Retail or Wholesale organisations recycling needs
How to conduct a waste audit in Retail and Wholesale organisations
A waste audit is a hands-on review of the different types of waste your organisation produces. It can be conducted at a high level, for example reviewing all waste for a building, or at a more detailed level, for example reviewing waste per department or process area.
To find out more about identifying, measuring and reducing food waste if you operate a food business, visit Guardians of Grub.
With the knowledge undertaking a waste audit provides, you can take steps to reduce waste and ensure your business complies with legislation concerning waste handling, storage and disposal.
Undertaking a waste audit will help you to establish:
What types of waste your organisation produces
Where waste is generated in your organisation – whether for the whole building or for each department or process area
Who generates waste in your organisation
Your audit may also highlight that your organisation needs more or fewer bins for the waste you’re producing.
Once complete, you can then develop a waste action plan with your priorities and targets for reusing, recycling and recovering your waste.
Good to know
Your existing waste or recycling service provider, if you have one, may be better placed to undertake the audit process for you – especially if your waste may include items that could cause an injury, such as broken glass, , or other potentially .
To conduct your waste audit, start by downloading the Waste Audit template.
You will need:
A tarpaulin or plastic sheet to tip waste out onto for sorting
Appropriate (PPE) as identified via a (to protect you and your clothes)
Containers for sorting the waste into
Weighing equipment
A pen to record your findings
Your waste audit template
1. Conduct a risk assessment
You should produce a risk assessment before undertaking a waste audit to ensure that you’ve considered and mitigated all risks, such as those entailed by manual handling. Ensure that all relevant colleagues are properly briefed on the task before starting the audit, including your Health & Safety officer or team, if you have one.
Additional care should be taken if your waste is likely to contain sharps, clinical waste or potentially hazardous waste.
2. Collect your waste
Gather waste from all premises within your organisation, such as head offices, distribution hubs, depots and stores, and from stockrooms, offices, staff break rooms, canteens or kitchens and front of store. Make sure you include general waste, all recyclables, kitchen waste and waste from litterbins, if applicable. Keep these materials separate from each other during your audit.
3. Sorting
Tip the waste onto your tarpaulin or plastic sheet and sort it into the different material types using your sorting containers. Use the waste audit template as a guide when deciding the number of different material types.
4. Measuring
Weigh each type of waste, remembering to deduct the weight of the container to arrive at the of the material.
5. Recording
Record the date, time and location of your audit and the weights of each material on your form.
6. Repeat twice
Where possible, it’s a good idea to repeat the audit (steps 2-5) twice more (three times altogether) and average your totals. This will provide a more accurate picture of the types and quantities of waste and recycling your organisation produces.
7. Calculate your results
Using the average net weight for each material stream, calculate your annual waste and recycling total. Calculate your annual waste production, for example by multiplying by 52 if you have measured by the week.
Tips for carrying out your waste audit
Choose the right location and date(s) for your audit – the best time to undertake it will be the day before your waste is collected
Secure a suitable area for opening and containers and sorting the waste materials
Keep your audit dates secret so that employees won’t change their behaviour and skew your results, but make sure that cleaners and facilities staff know so they don’t empty the bins.