Deliveroo and Oxwash partner on waste-busting takeaway tub cleaning service

It is Friday, it has been a long week, and tonight much of the country will mull which takeaway to order. But could their deliveries soon come with added green credentials?

Takeaway delivery giant Deliveroo announced this week it is partnering with Oxford clean tech company Oxwash to trial a container washing service for its partner restaurants that promises to slash energy use, waste, and environmental impacts. 

The takeaway ordering platform, which works with more than 80,000 restaurants around the world to deliver meals, said the scheme will help cut plastic waste by enabling customers to volunteer to have their containers collected, washed, and reused by restaurants.

The trial, which will take place in London and Cambridge from August, will see customers able to scan a QR code on Deliveroo packaging to arrange for their containers to be picked up for washing and reuse. Alternatively they will be able to drop them off at collection points around the cities.

Oxwash and Deliveroo will use the trial to assess whether these collection and drop-off solutions are convenient enough to encourage customers to take part. If successful, the system could be rolled out to other cities from 2020. 

Oxwash claims its technology is the "world's first truly zero-emission hyper-local washing platform", with operations powered by renewable energy and biodegradable detergents. 

Founder Kyle Grant said takeaway container washing could emerge as an "innovative new model to the market in the battle against single-use plastic waste".

"I'm confident that the integration of our operation with Deliveroo's outstanding commitment to sustainability will make a rapid change to the amount of plastic waste entering the planet's ecosystems," he said. 

News of the trial follows efforts from Deliveroo to cut the amount of single-use plastics used by restaurants for takeaway meals, in response to a surge in public concern over the impact of plastics on the world's oceans. 

Last year the delivery service introduced an 'opt-in' button for plastic cutlery, which it claims has cut the number of customers receiving plastic knives, forks and spoons by 90 per cent worldwide. 

Deliveroo's UK managing director Dan Warne said the new trial is an example of the firm's innovation to "help reduce the usage of plastics and promote recycling to our customers". 

The booming takeaway market has also taken steps in recent months to cut emissions from delivery networks with leading operators such as Deliveroo and Just Eat unveiling electric vehicle plans.