Multiply that across hundreds of pubs every day of the year and you begin to see the scale of the waste challenge.
Rather than sending all that waste to landfill, J D Wetherspoon has teamed up with Veolia to turn food scraps, empty bottles and general rubbish into new resources.
It’s a partnership that shows how large hospitality brands can rethink waste – and it offers useful lessons for smaller pubs, restaurants and cafés too.
Who’s Involved? Wetherspoon and Veolia in a Nutshell
J D Wetherspoon is one of the most recognisable pub chains in the UK and Ireland, serving millions of customers annually. With such a high turnover of food and drink, large volumes of waste are inevitable.
Veolia is a leading UK resource-management company that specialises in recycling, energy recovery and waste services. Since 2018, Veolia has been Wetherspoon’s main waste partner, handling the majority of the chain’s pub waste streams.
What Does the Recycling Deal Actually Do?
At first glance, it’s a waste collection service. In reality, it’s a full resource-management partnership covering:
Food waste
Glass bottles and jars
Paper, cardboard, tins and cans
Certain plastics
Waste cooking oil
General non-recyclable waste
Some electrical items
The shared goal is to divert as much as possible away from landfill and turn it into something useful instead.
Turning Food Waste into Green Energy
Food waste from Wetherspoon pubs is taken to anaerobic digestion plants, where it is broken down to produce renewable biogas. In a recent 12-month period, almost 10,000 tonnes of Wetherspoon food waste helped generate enough green electricity to power around 1,000 homes.
This not only prevents methane emissions from landfill but also puts waste to work producing clean energy.
Giving Glass a Second Life
Glass from the bar is collected and processed into high-quality recycled material known as “cullet”. This can be used in manufacturing new products, including insulation materials and new glass items. Using recycled glass significantly reduces energy use and carbon emissions compared with using raw materials.
Smarter Systems and Data
The partnership is data-driven. Veolia provides:
Pub-by-pub waste and recycling data
Route optimisation to cut vehicle emissions
A central monitoring hub for Wetherspoon’s estate
This helps managers spot where waste is high, where recycling could improve, and where training might be needed.
What Has the Partnership Achieved?
The standout achievement is this: for the waste streams Veolia manages directly, Wetherspoon now sends zero operational waste to landfill.
Key Figures from a Recent Financial Year
59,377 tonnes of waste managed
Nearly 50% recycled (glass, cardboard, tins, plastics, cooking oil, WEEE)
Around 17% treated via anaerobic digestion (food waste and coffee grounds)
Approximately 33% used for waste-to-energy power generation
0% of Veolia-managed waste sent to landfill
In one year alone, treatment of Wetherspoon’s glass and food waste avoided over 16,000 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions compared with landfill.
Why This Matters for Hospitality
The partnership shows what’s possible when waste is treated as a resource rather than a nuisance.
For hospitality businesses, the message is clear:
Zero landfill is achievable
Food waste can become green energy
Glass and packaging have real value when recycled
Data-led decisions improve performance site by site
Practical Lessons for Smaller Pubs and Restaurants
Even without a national network, smaller venues can borrow ideas from the Wetherspoon–Veolia model:
Start with a simple waste audit
Track what’s going into each bin for a week.
Separate the basics
Keep food waste, glass and recycling apart from general rubbish.
Speak to your waste contractor
Ask about food-waste collections, glass recycling and local processing options.
Train your team
Quick refreshers help keep standards consistent, especially during busy periods.
Tell your customers
Adding a note to menus or table-cards about your recycling efforts builds goodwill.
What Customers Can Do
Customers have their part to play:
Use the correct bins where separation is offered
Avoid unnecessary waste by ordering appropriately
Support venues that are transparent about sustainability efforts
Looking Ahead
The Wetherspoon–Veolia partnership reflects a broader shift in the industry from simple “waste disposal” to “resource management”. Every bottle, scrap of food and cardboard box has value when handled correctly.
Challenges remain, particularly around reducing waste at source and tackling complex packaging. But the results so far – thousands of tonnes recycled, zero landfill for core waste streams, and major emissions reductions – show how far hospitality can go with the right partnerships in place.
Whether you’re part of the trade or simply a regular pub-goer, it’s a powerful reminder that what happens behind the bins can be just as important as what happens behind the bar.
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