Compass Group UK & Ireland has announced it is expanding the deployment of Cauli’s technology-based reusable food and drink system, with each piece of packaging said to be reusable up to 400 times.
Compass says the expansion comes after a proof-of-concept phase within its Restaurant Associates Group, Eurest, Chartwells and Healthcare sectors, designed to refine reuse solutions across diverse, high-volume operating environments. Apparently, every piece of Cauli packaging including coffee cups, takeaway boxes and pizza boxes is reusable up to 400 times, with a unique digital ID to maximize its lifespan and data transparency.
Cauli’s reuseable system utilizes tracking technologies which allow customers to borrow and return food and drink containers ‘seamlessly’, and Compass claims that to date, over 383,000 single-use packaging items have been eliminated. The companies have also integrated an AI-powered Reverse Vending Machine (RVM) across Compass sites to automate and simplify the return process.
Compass recently launched Our Planet Promise, designed to display progress towards its sustainability goals. Its waste commitments include achieving a 5% reduction in food waste in FY26 against a FY25 baseline, reducing single-use foodservice packaging by 30% by 2035 and increasing recycling and anaerobic digestion to 6% by 2035.
Mingqiao Zhao, co-founder at Cauli, said:
“Many reuse schemes fail because without tracking, packaging simply disappears. By integrating smart traceability into the Cauli Reuse System, we keep containers in circulation and deliver data-backed waste reduction at scale. Partnering with Compass has allowed us to prove our technology in high-volume, cross-sector environments, and we are thrilled to expand this rollout to help more of their clients seamlessly transition to a frictionless, circular model.”
In related news, Borealis and FSG Returnables have helped the Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) introduce a reusable cup system to its hospital cafés, a move expected to reduce waste and lower Extended Producer Responsibility costs. The system includes Zero Waste Cups, a mono-polypropylene solution that uses material from Borealis’ Daploy high-melt-strength portfolio.
Sykell has expanded its Einfach Mehrweg reuse system for takeaway containers to include prefilled packaging, hoping to scale up reuse operations for pre-packaged food. Described as the ‘world’s first’ reusable primary plastic packaging for pre-packaged foods in various categories, the prefills – which come in 500 ml and 1500 ml variants – can be returned to reverse vending machines at 6,000 return points located across Germany.
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