Emergency rubbish removals reveal heatwave hospitality boom

Increasing numbers of Britain’s hospitality businesses were forced to adopt emergency waste measures to cope with booming demand and soaring temperatures during last week’s heatwave.

With temperatures reaching 30 degrees in many parts of the country, many Brits avoided the heat of their own kitchens and flocked to pubs and restaurants in order to cool down. As a result, increasing numbers of hospitality businesses were forced to book emergency rubbish removal services to clear built up food waste, packaging and empty drinks bottles from in and and around their bin stores.

Clearabee provided emergency waste removal services to almost 350 hospitality businesses across mainland Britain between 29 June and 5 July. It removed 81 tonnes of food waste, packaging and empty drinks containers, an increase of 224 per cent compared with the first week of June, when it cleared 27 tonnes of waste for around 100 hospitality business.

While there was no corresponding increase in the levels of food waste, many restaurants booked additional waste collections to limit the time food waste spent outside in the high temperatures. The greatest demand for emergency waste collection services was experienced in London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Booming demand and high temperatures are welcome, but they do create logistical challenges for hospitality businesses. Pubs and restaurants built up volumes of rubbish that went well beyond what their regular waste management providers were contracted to collect. Many had to book emergency waste services to clear overflowing bin stores to avoid environmental problems and remain open.