21/07/2011 (Business Green) - The world's largest confectionary factory has achieved zero waste status four years ahead of schedule, saving owners Nestlé £120,000 per year.

The Nestlé York site makes over a billion Kit Kats and 183 million Aero bars each year and is considerably larger than the company's two other factories that have already reached the zero waste milestone, Girvan on the West Coast of Scotland and Dalston in Cumbria.

The manufacturer claims the move has resulted in substantial savings from landfill tax and a 70 per cent reduction in the number of skip lifts required, while it also managed to generate revenue by selling nearly 800 tonnes of recovered materials such as cardboard, plastics, metal, pallets and metallised film.

Following the setting of sustainability targets in September last year, the company has also slashed water use across the UK and Ireland by 36 per cent and reduced packaging used in Easter Eggs, Christmas selection boxes, and catering stick packs and sachets.

"Making such progress in reducing the amount of waste our factories send to landfill, how much water we use and packaging we produce are significant steps," Paul Grimwood, chairman and chief executive Nestlé UK and Ireland, said in a statement.

Nestlé was also one of 72 leading businesses that pushed for the EU to raise its emissions reduction target from 20 per cent by 2020 to 30 per cent earlier this year.

The company and its high profile Kit Kat brand faced criticism over its palm oil policy last year, but it subsequently amended its palm oil policy and has highlighted the latest milestone as evidence of its commitment sustainable business practices.

The company is also trialling a range of new sustainability concepts and technologies at its Fawdon factory in Newcastle, which it aims to make zero waste over the next two years at the same time as slashing carbon emissions and water use.