Recycling boxes have been installed at over 900 Specsavers practices in the UK for patients to sustainably dispose of spectacles and contact lenses for free.
Sara Koulloutas, head of sustainability for the UK, Ireland and Spain at Specsavers, told Optician: ‘Customers at Specsavers can drop off both metal and plastic glasses and sunglasses, as well as contact lenses and accessories, including blister packs, contact lens cases and solution bottles.’
Practices have been provided with information about the scheme and given access to resources via the Specsavers intranet, as well as PR support from the multiple’s regional agencies.
Koulloutas said it was important to make patients aware that contact lenses can be recycled despite their small size and limitations of local authority recycling collections.
‘It’s why Specsavers has partnered with a specialist recycling company to enable patients to recycle their contact lenses and plastic contact lens packaging free of charge by bringing them into their local practice,’ Koulloutas added.
Specsavers has partnered with MyGroup and said it was working to understand, reduce and mitigate the full lifecycle environmental impact of all its products and services.