Biffa found guilty of exporting banned waste

While it is legal to export waste paper to China, shipping unsorted household waste there has been banned since 2006. 

The company, one of the UK’s largest waste management firms, was prosecuted by the Environment Agency after inspectors searched seven 25-tonne containers at Felixstowe port. 

The watchdog said its agents “found everything from women’s underwear and plastic bottles to metal pipes and even a damaged copy of a 12-inch record by 90s chart-toppers Deee-Lite”.

“The nappies and sanitary towels gave off a pungent 'vomit-like' smell when inspected by officers,” it added. 

Other debris allegedly found in the containers included laminate flooring, coat hangers, pet food containers, toilet wipes, and latex gloves.

Biffa said it had “strongly contested” the case and was considering whether to appeal the jury’s decision following the three-week trial at Wood Green crown court.

But the Environment Agency said jurors did not accept Biffa's claim that the contaminated bundles were made up of waste paper.

A Biffa spokesman said: “These materials were regularly inspected by customs in China and by a Chinese Inspectorate regime based in the UK prior to shipping. 

“In addition, all buyers conducted pre-checks before shipping to confirm that the materials were 98.5pc pure paper, which was the accepted industry standard.”

The waste management firm urged the Environment Agency to clarify what levels of purity would be acceptable under the law. 

The EA said Biffa has agreed a £9,912 proceeds of crime payment, although sentencing was deferred to 27 September.