WRAP calls for ‘Resource Revolution’ with new 5-year plan

The UK Government's resource efficiency body has unveiled details of its strategic plan for the next five years, with an aim to "create the step-change needed to meet the demands of future generations".


The new plan from WRAP, titled ‘Resource Revolution: Creating the Future’, sets out how the organisation will work with businesses, governments and consumers to challenge the ‘business as usual’ approach to consumption.

Chief executive Liz Goodwin, who was honoured with an OBE earlier this month, said: “We have a clear five-year plan, of where and why we need to take action to create a sustainable future. There is still much to do.

“WRAP will continue to operate in the way it always has – starting from the evidence and then working in collaboration, at the interface between business, governments and consumers to help facilitate and catalyse the change we require to bring about the resource revolution.”

Three ‘R’s

The organisation has pinpointed three ‘priority areas’ where it believes it can make the biggest impact: food and drink; clothing and textiles; and electricals and electronics – all of which are underpinned by resource management. These three sectors account for 25% of the UK’s carbon footprint; 80% of our water footprint and 40% of UK household waste, according to WRAP.

Under the new plan, WRAP will encourage people to adopt the three ‘R’s of the future. These are: –

Re-inventing how we design, produce and sell products.
Re-thinking how we use and consume products. 
Re-defining what is possible through re-use and recycling. 

WRAP, which was first established in 2000, is now a registered charity, with a strong track record of identifying actions to reduce and prevent waste. In the past five years alone, the organisation has reduced waste by more than four million tonnes and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 50 million tonnes.

edie’s Resource Revolution

Back in 2012, edie launched its own ‘Resource Revolution’ campaign, which set out to examine how far business and the waste supply chain were along the path towards smarter resource management.

The campaign featured two exclusive reports, live panel debates, webinars, a conference and an awards scheme. It also hosted eight ‘leader interviews’, exploring how companies were shaping their business models towards a resource revolution. 

Watch the first thought leadership interview below: – 

View other interviews: –

– The Manufacturer perspective – Unilever 
– The Waste Contractor perspective – FCC Environment 
 The Designer perspective – RSA The Great Recovery Project 
 The Local Authority perspective – Somerset Waste Partnership 
 The Brand Leader perspective – Coca Cola Enterprises 
 The Retail perspective – John Lewis Partnership
 The Thought Leader perspective – Peter Jones

Luke Nicholls

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