A MAUCHLINE business is inspiring councils across the country to go green and ditch single-use milk cartons in schools.

Farmer Bryce Cunningham and his team at Mossgiel Farm have inspired a school in Midlothian to ditch milk cartons in favour of more sustainable options.

At a meeting of Edinburgh City Council last week, Scottish Green Party councillor Steve Burgess raised the issue, tabling a motion for the council to look at different options with their four year contract with Muller due to expire this year.

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He highlighted the introduction of organic milk along with a reduction in single-use plastic containers in primary schools in East Ayrshire.

It’s something that is possible because of Mossgiel farm, who provide every school in East Ayrshire with Mossgiel’s organic milk – in the process wiping no fewer than 400,000 single-use bottles from the council’s waste output every year.

Councillor Burgess’s motion was passed and officials then reached out to several Edinburgh schools for thoughts on how the changes would affect their mid-morning milk process. A majority responded saying they felt it was “not currently feasible” due to staffing pressures.

But the council received an enthusiastic response from St Andrew’s Primary, which has volunteered to take part in a pilot scheme.

Staff indicated their focus is on reducing waste rather than the introduction of organic milk, saying they are happy to continue providing pupils with the existing product but through the proposed dispensers.

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Commenting on the news, a spokesperson from Mossgiel said: “The milk in this pilot isn’t ours, organic or delivered in electric vans and it still uses some single use plastic in a ‘bag in box’ dispenser - but you’ve no idea how the atmosphere on our little farm has changed tonight with this news. We’ve been working on our vision to change Scottish dairy, and change it we will.”

If the pilot scheme at St Andrew’s Primary is successful it could see single-use cartons removed from Edinburgh City Council area schools. Councillors were due to vote on whether the trial should go ahead yesterday.

If agreed the pilot scheme will run from Easter to summer this year.

It’s estimated switching to cartonless organic milk would cost the council between £83k and £113k more each year.

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