When Simon Howie started a fridge recycling business in Perth 20 years ago he would never imagine the impact it would have.
Two decades later and Shore Recycling has recycled its five millionth fridge – an average of 250,000 a year.
Mr Howie, best known for his butchery business, started the company with Malcolm Todd following a change in UK law.
All CFCs gases – non-toxic gas used in coolants – had to be recovered after January 2001. The change in law led to a fridge mountain building in the UK.
Mr Howie spent a week in Germany in the spring of 2001 to find a technical solution for CFC recovery.
Then work began in earnest constructing a facility at Friarton Road.
Fridges arrive at rate of 6,000 a week
Mr Howie, chairman, recalls: “It was all so new – real uncharted territory.
“These were new regulations to protect the environment and we were all feeling our way.
“We just knew we were doing the right thing – providing a Scottish solution for Scotland’s fridges.”
The only fridge recycling facility in Scotland, 25 of the 32 Scottish councils signed up immediately.
While the site was still under construction, the fridges started to come from every part of the country at a rate of 6,000 a week.
Five former military hangers were filled to the brim with fridges before the recycling began in December 2001.
Simon Howie sells business for £23m
A fire in May 2005 was a major setback, with the equipment destroyed.
It leads the company to invest £6 million on new machinery that can handle fridges and all other small domestic appliances, including televisions.
In January 2008 Shore bought rival company MB Recycling of St Helens for £3m.
Then Mr Howie sold the entire business to Viridor in April 2008 for £23m, with operations remaining in Perth.
The business then came full circle when Mr Howie agreed a deal to buy the business back in October last year.
Vital part of Scotland’s recycling infrastructure
The five million fridges recycled in the past 20 years is an average of two for every Scottish household.
The plant can recycle fridges at a rate of 100 an hour.
Mr Howie said: “Many of the challenges remain the same – providing an environmentally compliant plant, a good service for our customers and a vitally important piece of Scotland’s recycling infrastructure.
“The reasons for our confidence going forward are firmly rooted in the strong, key staff we inherited with the business.
“The recent public focus on COP26 reflects our focus to keep everything local and to minimise the distances any of our recycled materials travel.”
