Invisible plastic - Wildlands Adventure Zoo

First-year students from the English-taught Logistics Management programme worked on a project for Wildlands Adventure Zoo. They wanted to gain more insight into the different types of plastics entering its hospitality operations through suppliers. These are the so-called ‘invisible plastics’ in hospitality: plastics that visitors do not immediately see, such as the packaging of a bag of fries.

“Our main goal was to gain more insight into what comes in at the front end. We have less influence over what our visitors bring into the park. What we can influence, however, is what comes in through our suppliers. One of our goals is to become the most sustainable zoo in the Netherlands, and the circular process of waste management is very important to this.” Arno Flokstra, Logistics Coordinator, Hospitality & Service department at Wildlands.

About the project

“First of all, our group visited the client. We were immediately able to ask important questions to get the project off to a good start, and we were given a behind-the-scenes look.” Thanh Huyen Thoai Nguyen, Logistics Management student. In collaboration with the Circular Plastics research group, the students gained more knowledge about the different types of plastics and their impact on the environment. The research group provided handheld scanners that allowed students to scan the type of plastic and collect data showing how easy or difficult it is to recycle that type of plastic.

“This allowed the students to map the plastic flows. Each group of students focused on one restaurant in the park. The focus was on the plastics entering the restaurant after transport. It was ultimately up to the students to come up with sound advice on reducing plastic use, while also finding a balance between packaging and hygiene requirements. You can imagine that not everything can be easily replaced with cardboard,” says lecturer Ineke Nevels.

The students first started working with data and also gained their own insights by taking a critical look at the surroundings of the restaurant. “Some students came to the simple conclusion that there were no collection bins for plastic bottles in the area around the restaurant. They were paying attention to things like this as well,” says Ineke Nevels.

The students then used the collected data to carry out an LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), a method for determining the environmental impact of a product. Based on this, they identified possible improvements and alternatives and formulated advice for Wildlands on reducing plastic use and exploring alternative solutions.

What did this collaboration achieve?

For Wildlands, working with students is valuable. “They apply new knowledge and have the time to really dive deeper into the data. Time we don't always have in our day-to-day operation.” says Flokstra. The research results highlight bottlenecks and provide a reason to take another look at certain processes. The students consider not only sustainability, but also factors such as revenue and efficiency.

A concrete example is the collaboration with our sauce supplier. Wildlands has since agreed to move away from individual mayonnaise sachets and switch to a pump system. “Of course, this also involves other considerations. It is more sustainable, but at the same time, consumption is higher. You are constantly weighing sustainability against cost efficiency.”

Wildlands also intends to continue working with NHL Stenden in the future. “NHL Stenden is an important regional partner for us in the field of research,” says Flokstra