Biffa has completed its acquisition of Aberdeenshire’s Keenan Recycling, a commercial food waste collections provider operating across England, Scotland and Wales.
Established in 2003 in New Deer, Keenan Recycling offers services for food waste collection to businesses, waste management firms, and local authorities, in addition to operating a composting and biofuel facility in Aberdeen.
Biffa has stated that this acquisition will bolster its capabilities in food waste collection services in preparation for the upcoming Simpler Recycling legislation.
This legislation requires the segregation of dry recyclables into specific containers and the separate collection of food waste. The Simpler Recycling initiative is set to be implemented for most businesses in England by March 2025, households by March 2026, and micro businesses by March 2027.
Keenan Recycling collects approximately 56,000 tonnes of food waste annually from its network of 21 depots nationwide. The company operates a fleet of 80 modern collection vehicles, which include both diesel and HVO engines, and uses advanced route planning software and bin weighing technology to reduce its carbon footprint.
Maxine Mayhew, Chief Operating Officer, Biffa Collections and Specialist Services, said: “Keenan Recycling has built an outstanding reputation as a leader in commercial food waste collections, and we’re delighted to be welcoming the expertise of 140 colleagues into the Biffa family.
“By integrating Keenan Recycling’s offering with our wider infrastructure and resources, we see tremendous potential to enhance our ability to meet the requirements of Simpler Recycling legislation mandating separate food waste collection.”
Grant Keenan, Managing Director at Keenan Recycling, said: “We’re extremely proud of the remarkable growth we’ve achieved over the past 20 years, evolving from a small, independent operation into one of the UK’s leading organics recycling and food waste collections businesses. We’d like to thank BGF who backed us to grow the business and have supported us with both investment and advice over the last 9 years.”
BGF has seen a return of £8.4 million on its £3.5 million investment in Keenan Recycling in 2015, which it supported as the company expanded its operations.
