Skip to main content
First Circle

Less material. More recycled content. A closed loop cycle.

Plastic packaging has never been more important but has never seen more scrutiny. We design for less material, more recycled content and a closed loop cycle, backed by ISO 14001 and BRCGS standards, audited at every site.

Our approachIndustry firsts

  • 30%+

    Recycled HDPE content

  • 350m+

    Bottles produced per year

  • 4

    ISO-managed sites

  • 2007

    World-first rHDPE in dairy

How we drive sustainability, daily.

Four areas of progress, embedded in how we design, manufacture and deliver every bottle we ship.

  • Recycled content

    Minimum of 30% recycled content in every bottle

    Every bottle produced at First Circle Packaging is 100% recyclable and we aim to use at least 30% recycled material in every product we produce. We are constantly investing in efficient processes to reduce our energy consumption and environmental impact, and our aim is to deliver zero-to-landfill.

  • Lightweighting

    Less material. Same reliability.

    We design bottles to perform with less plastic, without compromising the strength, handling or product protection our customers need. By reducing weight wherever possible, we help our customers to limit environmental impact, comply with legislation and reduce packaging cost.

  • Lower carbon transport

    Mega trucks. Implant production.

    Mega trucks reduce the number of trips needed. Our implant model goes further, manufacturing inside the customer’s filling site, removing transport miles altogether. Both meaningful for the carbon footprint of our bottles.

Industry firsts in sustainability.

Four moments where our R&D shifted the wider industry forwards.

  • 2007

    Recycled HDPE for dairy.

    A world first, we introduced rHDPE to the dairy industry, opening the door to closed-loop milk packaging at scale.

  • 2012

    Lightweighting at scale.

    Lightweighting introduced to the UK dairy sector. Material savings without sacrificing strength or shelf-life.

  • 2013

    30% rHDPE four-pint.

    The first four-pint milk bottle made with 30% recycled material. A UK industry first.

  • 2014

    Licensed in Australia and NZ.

    Our lightweight bottle design licensed to dairy producers in Australia and New Zealand.

Quality and environmental management, certified.

  • ISO 9001

    Quality Management System

    Recognised quality management across every site and every line.

  • ISO 14001

    Environmental Management

    Environmental management embedded into our day-to-day operations.

  • BRCGS

    Global Standard for Packaging Materials

    BRCGS-certified packaging for food and consumer goods customers.

Where to next.