A new Tasmanian invention is aiming to revolutionise recycling in cafes across Australia, offering an alternative milk delivery system which is set to save the average cafe from using close to 10,000 plastic milk bottles every year.
The Udder Way, is an Australian first, refillable 18-litre keg and milk tap system which replaces the need for cafes and other businesses to use conventional milk bottles.
It was launched today ahead of World Milk Day, in partnership with Tasmanian dairy producer Ashgrove.
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The Udder Way founder Ed Crick said the invention would help cafés reduce their environmental footprint, while also saving time when making coffees, and saving money by streamlining their processes.
"As an owner of two coffee venues, we were recycling hundreds and hundreds of plastic milk bottles every week and knew there had to be another, better way to reduce our environmental footprint and save money on disposal and recycling," Mr Crick said.
"Right now, less than 50 per cent of plastic milk bottles in Australia are recycled. When you consider the number of bottles we go through as a nation this makes a significant environmental impact.
"Just one Udder Way keg can save over 7000 bottles over its lifetime.
"Our mission is to eventually remove 100 million plastic milk bottles from the production line every year saving time, money, space and the planet.
"The smaller footprint of each keg holds the same amount as an existing crate of milk, but is 30pc smaller which means a space saving for cafes and more milk in each truck."
Local Tasmanian dairy producer Ashgrove's CEO Richard Bennett said the company was delighted to play its part in the project by refilling the kegs, calling for local cafes to come on board.
"As a proud Tasmanian business, we are delighted to be the first dairy to partner with The Udder Way to not only make a difference to the environment but to help a range of businesses operate more efficiently," Mr Bennett said.
"We've strongly believed in Ed's vision for The Udder Way from the get-go and have been delighted to work with him to make it a reality.
"To have a Tasmanian innovation, manufactured in Tasmania and filled with Tasmanian milk is pretty special and we're inviting all local cafes who are keen to make a difference to the environment to join us on the journey.
"We're also excited to see The Udder Way make a difference in cafes across Australia and would recommend dairies across the nation consider signing up to play their part in reducing the impact of plastic milk bottles on our planet."
For more information on The Udder Way and to find out how you can become involved, visit www.theudderway.com.au/.
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