Tag: recycling

Millions of football boots to find new homes in new environmental awareness campaign

A new ‘Football Rebooted’ campaign has been launched today by the UK’s leading smart energy supplier, Utilita, and former England and Premier League goalkeeper, David James MBE.

The campaign has been created to help the nation recycle at least one million pairs of ‘pre-played’ football boots and astro boots, saving families a small fortune, as well as 136,000 tonnes of carbon – the same as taking 7,000 cars off the road for a year, or turning the energy off in one million medium-sized houses for a week.

The ‘donate and claim’ campaign, enables anyone with spare football boots or astro boots to request a freepost ‘boot bag’ to donate their boots, after which their boots will appear at one of many claim stations that will pop up in parks, training grounds, and at some of the UK’s largest football clubs.

Premium pairs of the ‘most wanted’ retro boots and former and current players’ boots and other items will also be in the mix, giving anyone a chance to come along and grab a pair to be proud of.  

The campaign is strategically designed to put an aspirational spin on a mechanic that will get good boots through to families struggling to afford new ones, after Utilita’s State of Play report revealed that out of the 74 percent of families who had been impacted financially by the pandemic, 18 percent won’t be able to send their kids back to grassroots football as they can’t afford boots and other items such as goalie gloves and shin pads. 

Campaign ambassador and keen environmentalist, David James, and the Utilita team held focus groups with families, which revealed the barriers to boots finding new homes – the biggest being pride.

The donate and claim mechanic avoids families needing to accept charity from people they know, and makes claiming a new pair an aspirational activity, whereby people are impacting the environment, too.  

Campaign ambassador, David James MBE, comments on why the campaign is so important: “Right now, there are millions of pairs of football boots that people have grown out of or replaced, and we need to make sure they don’t end up in landfill.

“Getting these boots replayed through Utilita’s Football Rebooted campaign will not only save players a few quid but will also act as an important reminder about the power of upcycling and reusing items that still have a lot of life left in them.” 

Bill Bullen, founder of Utilita – the only energy company created to help households use and waste less energy – explained why Utilita has created the Football Rebooted campaign: “Most consumers are becoming more thoughtful about how their choices impact the environment, but sometimes life gets in the way of making the right choice. That’s why we have created Football Rebooted, which makes recycling football boots with plenty of life left in them, really easy. 

“The campaign has been shaped by grassroots football players, coaches and parents, so uses carbon-saving examples that really resonate with this audience – home energy usage and taking cars off the road. It’s been incredibly encouraging to see football players as young as six years old talk passionately about the importance of protecting the environment.”

Premier League and EFL clubs across the UK, including Portsmouth, Southampton, Derby County and Leeds United, have already signed up to donate the football boots worn by their academy players, while first-team players have also donated their own boots in the interests of the environment.

As part of the new campaign, schools can request boots be sent to them for children who they identify as needing football boots to enable them to play in or outside of school. 

English Schools’ FA (ESFA) Chairman, Phil Harding, said: “The last 12 months have been very difficult for families, teams, players and schools alike and, as the National Governing Body for Schools’ Football, the ESFA welcome any campaign to help ensure children have every opportunity to take part in a sport that they are passionate about, but that is also so beneficial for both their physical and mental health.

“The Football Rebooted campaign not only has a great environmental message but is also working towards helping children to be active, participate and enjoy school sport.” 

Find out more information about the campaign at www.footballrebooted.co.uk.

Millions of makeup wipes piled as high as the Eiffel Tower going to landfills every day


Time to clean up our makeup habits

We’re flushing away or binning an astonishing 11 billion wet wipes every year which can take up to 100 years to biodegrade.

BusinessWaste.co.uk, waste management specialists, are concerned about the volume of waste being created by the number of makeup wipes and says that women and men across their country need to change their ways.

“Makeup wipes are the quickest and cheapest way to remove makeup on the market, but this doesn’t mean they’re the best option for the environment,” says Mark Hall, company spokesman.

But as global sales of all wet wipes are set to hit £16 billion by 2021, it’s time to scrub away our nations unhealthy habits of using makeup wipes, he says.

Time to clean up

We all know that using makeup wipes is bad for the environment, but because they’re an incredibly convenient way to remove makeup, it’s easy to convince yourself that one wipe a day won’t cause too much damage.

Millions of consumers rely on makeup wipes as they promise to wash away the day in seconds using just one product, making them cost effective and a low maintenance part of their daily routines.

But despite the plush cotton feel makeup wipes have on your face, they actually contain a mix of plastic fibres such as polyester and polypropylene which prevent them from biodegrading.

BusinessWaste.co.uk warns that they break down into micro-plastics and smaller fibres which will end up polluting the oceans and entering the food chain.

“With such a high number of wipes being used, there’s a lot of single-use plastic coming into the world,” says spokesperson Mark Hall, “the only way to prevent this happening is to stop using them.”

To add to the damage, makeup wipes and other wet wipes are not recyclable, meaning that the only way they can be properly disposed of is to put them into your rubbish bin.

“For heavens sake do not flush makeup wipes down the toilet,” warns Mark Hall, “you’ll only break your toilet and block up the sewers. You don’t want poo flooding your bathroom, do you?”

“I know it’s hard to get hold of toilet paper at the moment, but this is not the answer.”

With 9.3 million wet wipes being flushed down the loo every day, they account for a staggering 93% of all sewer blockages, and makeup wipes are a big contribution to this problem.

BusinessWaste.co.uk explain that flushing anything other than toilet paper down the loo could add to ‘fatbergs’ in the sewers, which are caused by a build-up of fat and non-biodegradable materials such as wet wipes, which can lead to sewers blocking or overflowing.

Fortunately, several brands are leading the way, such as high street store Holland & Barrett pledging to remove all wet wipes from their stores***, and brand Huggies aiming to remove all plastics from their wipes in the next five years.****

“Thank god people are taking action, otherwise our entire planet is going to be covered in a layer of makeup wipes,” says Hall, “imagine a squishy wet wipe mush underfoot everywhere you go. Yuck.”

What alternatives are there?

With many people knowing that makeup wipes are bad news for the environment, alternative ways to remove makeup are becoming increasingly popular, so why isn’t everyone is making the change?

“I’ll admit, I buy the cheap makeup wipes from the supermarket, but then I end up using 4 instead of 1,” says shopper Heidi in Lancaster, “but I still think it’s cheaper than whatever else is out there.”

Makeup wipes can cost as little as a pound for a pack, whereas plastic free alternatives can cost ten times that, so it’s easy to see why people are finding it hard to make the switch.

We’ve put together a list of inexpensive alternatives to help people cut down on makeup wipe use.

  • Try one of the many cleansers such as micellar water available on the market with a flannel, a bottle can last for ages, and the flannel is washable
  • Invest in a washable makeup remover cloth which only needs to be run under a tap before use. It can be chucked in your washing machine when you’ve used it, which over time will be much cheaper than restocking on makeup wipes
  • Use a gentle soap and some water and little bit of arm power
  • Stop wearing makeup every day, saves on wipes and saves you money! This is the ideal lockdown solution

Ultimately, we need to get people to realise that makeup wipes are a single-use plastic, like carrier bags and straws, says company spokesman Mark Hall.

“If people can take their own bags to the supermarket, then they can wipe out the wet wipe.”

Council catches up with bin collections as conditions ease

Council staff have been working around the clock to minimise disruption after this week’s heavy snowfall in the city – and now bin collections have resumed too.

Roads service teams have been out day and night to clear snow from priority pavements, cycle paths and roads, as well as outside COVID vaccination centres. Due to the volume of snowfall they often need to treat and re-treat the the network to keep it passable.

As a result of the severe weather and lying snow the council took the decision to suspend all waste and cleansing services and close recycling centres. During this time, waste and cleansing staff will help gritting teams to clear snow as quickly as possible.

Transport and Environment Convener Councillor Lesley Macinnes said on Tuesday: “We had our full fleet of gritters and mini-tractors out yesterday and throughout the night, treating roads, pavements and cycle lanes and clearing priority routes of snow.

“The team have been focusing on COVID vaccination centres and key arterial routes to make sure anyone needing to make an essential journey or to receive a COVID vaccination is able to.

Frontline staff in both roads and waste and cleansing services have been working tirelessly in the face of heavy snowfall, which can at times pose a safety risk. For this reason, we have decided to suspend waste collections, close recycling centres and cancel special uplifts, due to lying snow, for the safety of staff and the public. In the meantime, waste and cleansing staff will be assisting with snow-clearing efforts to help keep the city moving.

“We hope that everyone will understand that these are exceptional circumstances and that, while it may produce a temporary inconvenience for some residents, it is a sensible decision to prioritise safety for our crews and residents alike. We will resume waste collections as quickly as possible and thank the public for their patience – we will keep our website and social media updated with the latest information.”

Transport and Environment Vice Convener Councillor Karen Doran said: “Roads services teams have been working extremely hard overnight and will continue treating the city throughout the day. They will often need to revisit key routes multiple times to make sure they are passable when poor weather persists.

“With further snow and bitterly cold weather forecast we’ll need to concentrate on priority routes, revisiting these where necessary when further snow falls and ice forms. Squads will benefit from the assistance of waste and cleansing staff during this severe weather.

“I would encourage residents only to travel if it’s absolutely necessary and to take extra care if they do.”

Anyone with a booking for a recycling centre or a special uplift will receive an email about rebooking their appointment.

Further information and tips on clearing snow and gritting priority routes is available on the Council website.

Today will be largely dry with a maximum temperature of 2 – 3%; but there will be a few snow showers in eastern areas lingering through the day. Cloud will be patchy allowing for plenty of sunny spells. A little breezy.

Christmas waste in numbers

300,000 tonnes of waste chucked out this week

The staggering amount of waste generated at Christmas can be finally revealed, with a total of 302,913 tonnes of waste being dumped this week alone across the UK, as bins are filled to the brim.

“Even with a slightly toned-down Christmas this year, we all know how full the bins get after Christmas – it’s now clear the huge environmental impact all this waste has.

“The numbers are simply astonishing – 2,000 tonnes of uneaten cheese chucked out for example”, explains Charlotte Green from recycling firm TradeWaste.co.uk

The online survey carried out by TradeWaste.co.uk asked 4,500 people about the contents of their Christmas bins – the results are remarkable, with food waste and food packaging creating the most waste this year.

“People seem to have taken to eating well this year, with lockdowns and all the doom and gloom – it seems comfort eating has become a national institution, however nearly 5,000 tonnes of half-eaten mince pies where thrown out – seems a terrible shame to me!”, adds Green.

Christmas food lovers (and haters) chucked out this year:

  • 141,525 tonnes of food packaging
  • 50,544 tonnes of leftover Christmas dinners
  • 24,600 tonnes of glass drink bottles
  • 7,500 tonnes of drink cans
  • 4,800 tonnes of leftover mince pies
  • 2,000 tonnes of cheese

It is not only leftover food waste which is filling the nations bins – wrapping paper, cards, decorations. Of course Christmas trees are all being thrown out this week – all 12,000 tonnes of them.

Luckily much of the waste created at Christmas can be recycled with trees being shredded into chippings, cards being munched for paper and some wrapping paper can be recycled too.

The interesting one is Christmas lights – these should not be put in a general waste bin, instead they need to be taken to a local authority waste site and put in the small electricals skip where they can be processed.

Seasonal goods we are chucking out this week include:

  • 30,000 tonnes of Christmas cards
  • 17,444 tonnes of Christmas wrapping paper
  • 12,500 tonnes of Christmas decorations
  • 12,000 tonnes of Christmas trees
  • 68,488 miles of broken Christmas lights

“It’s really difficult to reduce waste at Christmas, but we can all do our bit. It’s really important to split up all the waste you have and put it in the correct bin – some need to be processed differently – like broken Christmas lights.

“I just want to know who is chucking out all the mince pies, seems such a travesty!” concluded TradeWaste.co.uk‘s Charlotte Green.

Secret Santa at Leith Collective!

SECRET Santa – a stalwart of the festive workplace – is sadly something else that we’ve had to put aside in these changed times. How will we cope without receiving a plastic doo-dah from (maybe) Barry in Sales or something that looks a bit rude from (maybe) Margaret in Purchasing?

Well, worry no more – The Leith Collective is helping to maintain the mystery and enigma that is Secret Santa AND ensuring it’s plastic free and one-of-a-kind at the same time as managing the whole process (on Santa’s behalf)!

Continuing with its mission to rid the world (starting with Edinburgh) of single-use plastic, The Leith Collective works with over 150 local artists, crafters and makers to deliver the most stunning pieces – all recycled, upcycled or created plastic-free.

Simply choose how much you want to spend on your Secret Santa gift, provide a bit more info about the recipient and Catherine, gift curator at The Leith Collective and officially approved by Santa himself, will select the perfect Secret Santa gift for your friend and /or colleague. Once we’ve chosen, wrapped and stored the gift, we’ll send an email to the recipient to tell them to come and collect their pressie!

The air of mystery is maintained, and no plastic cheapness needs to be wrapped up for George in Packing!

Secret Santa is ready at: https://www.theleithcollective.co.uk/secret-santa

Scots lead the way in the UK for caring for the environment

·       73% are recycling more during Covid-19 times

·       94% say tackling recycling is an urgent task

·       96% say recycling is everyone’s responsibility

·       55% say economy currently takes priority over the environment

·       Scotland ranked first in the UK when considering the environment since pandemic began

A whopping 95% of Scottish consumers say that since the Covid-19 outbreak, it is more important than ever to take care of our planet and the environment, a European-wide study by drink can recycling initiative, Every Can Counts, has found.

The stats show that Scots are leading the way in the UK for feeling the importance of recycling in current times.

The majority (94%) of survey respondents in Scotland said it is an urgent task to tackle recycling, while 96% said that considering recycling and its importance for the planet is an obligation of all citizens and consumers, not just world leaders. Despite this however, the survey also discovered that in these uncertain economic times, 55% of Scottish consumers say that the economy is currently a priority over the environment.

In the wake of Sir David Attenborough’s latest film, A Life On Our Planet, as well as his joining Instagram at 94 and achieving one million followers in record-breaking time, it seems environmental issues are finally coming to the fore.

Within the film’s poignant and hard-hitting introduction, Attenborough says, “The natural world is fading. This film is my witness statement and my vision for the future. The story of how we came to make this, our greatest mistake, and how, if we act now, we can yet put it right.” 

It seems this seed has been well and truly planted in the minds of Scots with 73% stating that, during the pandemic, they have recycled more than ever, suggesting that the increase in time spent at home has made it easier for people to do their bit and recycle more. Only 48% however, said they often or always recycle when at work and less when out and about at 45%.

Commenting on the figures, Rick Hindley, Director of Every Can Counts says, “The figures imply that given the time and correct resources, we’re all more than capable of recycling everything we can.

“It’s when we’re out and about or at work that it becomes more difficult. The findings from the survey also suggest that Covid-19 has prompted us to consider our own fragility as human beings and look at the way we treat the planet, our home.

“The Covid-19 outbreak has of course brought about devastating effects. However, as we can see from these survey results, one positive is that people are beginning to sit and up and take notice of the vital environmental issues we are facing. We do not have forever to rectify the damage that has been done to our planet. The time is now.

“Recycling – and especially recycling drink cans given that aluminium is infinitely recyclable – is something we can all do to help the planet. Over the past five years, the UK recycling rate for drink cans has increased by 16% to an impressive 76%. Our vision is to get that to 100%.”

Scottish respondents echoed this call to action with a massive 92% saying they would like to do more when it comes to recycling and 84% feeling that more needs to be done in general to encourage recycling amongst consumers.

Of the 12 UK regions surveyed as part of the wider European study, Greater London, Yorkshire & Humberside, the South West and South East came up top when quantifying the importance of recycling with scores of 80% plus, closely followed by Scotland and the West Midlands with scores of 79%.

It appears that the challenges of Covid-19 have further inspired Scots to care for the environment. 95% of Scots agreed that Covid-19 has made taking care of the planet and recycling more important than ever, the highest level of agreement recorded across all 12 UK regions, shared with the East of England.

Below: UK regions ranked in order of agreeing with the following statement: After Covid-19 it is more important than ever to take care of our planet / environment and recycle. 

1.     Scotland 95%

2.     East of England 95%

3.     North West 93%

4.     Northern Ireland 93%

5.     Greater London 91%

6.     North East 91%

7.     Yorkshire & Humberside 91%

8.     East Midlands 90%

9.     West Midlands 89%

10.  South West 89%

11.  Wales 86%

12.  South East 84%.

53 million disposable face masks are sent to landfill every single day

The UK is binning an incredible 53,000,000 disposable face masks every single day, with reports that many face masks are ending up being carelessly discarded in the street ending up in streams and rivers.

“If you walk around any street now you will see disposable face masks being blown around with leaves in the gutter – they are the new cigarette butt – people are simply chucking them after use.

“We know that 53 million are being sent to landfill each day – but just how many end-up elsewhere is the very scary part”, says Charlotte Green from waste company TradeWaste.co.uk

Now that face mask wearing has become a standard part of lockdown life, their disposal is being highlighted as a major new environmental crisis, with masks being found in streams, rivers, and oceans – like the modern-day plastic bottle.

Disposable face masks are typically made from plastic in 3 layers:

  • Non-woven plastic fabric outer
  • Melt-blown polymer filter such as polypropylene
  • Non-woven plastic fabric inner
  • Other – cotton ear loops and metal nose piece

The other issue with a disposable mask are the ear loops and metal piece used to grip the nose – often thrown with these in-tact they can become entangled around animals and wildlife, especially so when they end up in water courses.

A survey of 4,500 members of the UK public by TradeWaste.co.uk found that the numbers of masks being discarded daily are truly staggering:

  • 58.8 million face masks are being used daily in the UK currently (November)
  • 10% are reused, 90% are discarded
  • 53.3 million face masks are sent to landfill each day
  • Globally we are use 129 billion face masks per month

The main problem is that they are specifically designed to be chucked away after each use. In a medical setting this is controlled, but out in our towns and cities this is not controlled, and generally masks are thrown in residential and street waste bins for landfill.

“We as a country need better disposal methods to cope with the huge numbers of disposable masks being thrown away – most cannot be recycled. If restrictions and mask use continue then this issue is going to get progressively worse – action needs to be taken today”, concludes TradeWaste.co.uk‘s Charlotte Green.

Recycling: ‘a real Scottish success story’

  • Carbon impact of waste down 1.1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent from 2011
  • Less than 1 million tonnes of household waste sent to landfill for the first time
  • Plastic and glass recycling increase, paper and cardboard continues downward trend
  • Total household recycling rate 44.9%
  • Scottish households generated the equivalent of 0.44 tonnes of waste per person in 2019

Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) statisticians have published Official Statistics today (27 October 2020) which provide detail of Household Waste collected across all Local Authorities during 2019.

Scottish households generated the equivalent of 0.44 tonnes of waste per person in 2019, with 0.20 tonnes recycled, 0.14 tonnes sent to landfill and 0.11 tonnes diverted through other means such as incineration, composing and anaerobic digestion.

The total volume of household waste generated in Scotland remained largely the same as 2018, up 17,000 tonnes (an increase of 1%) from 2.41 million tonnes in 2018 to 2.42 million.

CARBON IMPACT OF SCOTTISH HOUSEHOLD WASTE CONTINUES TO DECREASE

The Scottish carbon metric measures the whole-life impact of resources. A measure of national performance, the metric takes a holistic view, from resource extraction and manufacturing emissions, through to resource management emissions.

Measuring the true impact of waste and waste management is most accurate when viewed in terms of emissions. This is measured in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This provides a more accurate picture than merely looking at tonnage (glass weights a lot more than paper), and takes into account the emissions created when waste is disposed of, whether through recycling, incineration, composting, anaerobic digestion or being sent to landfill.

The 2019 metric shows a continued downward trajectory since 2011 in Scotland’s household waste carbon impact. This is largely due to increased recycling rates – particularly for high impact waste materials – as well as reductions in waste generated and reduced landfilling of biodegradable waste.

The carbon impact of household waste generated and managed in 2018 was 5.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) – which is 1.0 tonnes per person. This was a decrease of 94,000 TCO2e from 2018 and a decrease of 1.1 million from 2011.

LESS THAN 1 MILLION TONNES OF HOUSEHOLD WASTE SENT TO LANDFILL FOR THE FIRST TIME

2019 saw a further decrease of household waste sent to landfill – falling below 1 million tonnes for the first time – down 26% or 273,000 tonnes from 2018. This is the eighth consecutive decrease in household waste landfilled since 2011 – and for the third consecutive year there was more Scottish waste recycled (1.1 million tonnes) than landfilled (0.76 tonnes). Waste recycled included reuse and composting.

The total amount of Scottish household waste managed by other diversion from landfill was 577,000 tonnes, an increase of 93% from 2018 – 369% from 2011. Most was managed by incineration (78%, 454,000 tonnes), followed by other treatment (16%, 91,000 tonnes) and non-certified composting/digestion (6%, 32,000 tonnes)

PLASTIC, GLASS, PAPER AND CARDBOARD

Plastic recycling rose by 1,000 tonnes (1%) to 57,379 tonnes in 2019, continuing the trend of increasing each year for the last eight years. Glass remains the second most recycled material, with 107,000 tonnes, similar to 2018.

Paper and cardboard as a whole remains the largest volume of material recycled at 192,562 tonnes.  However, there has been a general downward trend of paper and cardboard wastes recycled –in 2018 was down 17,000 tonnes (8%) – a 48,000 tonne (20%) reduction since 2011.

Within this mix, segregated paper waste is in continual decline – while cardboard and mixed paper and cardboard wastes have remained constant or increased over time. This may be partly due to replacement of segregated paper collections with mixed paper and cardboard collections.

It is also likely that a move away from print media to electronic media has decreased paper waste, while cardboard wastes have not decreased on the same scale, which could be a result of increased packaging materials as consumer habits move online.

HOUSEHOLD RECYCLING RATE 44.9%

Scotland’s overall household waste recycling rate was 44.9%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from 2018 and 5.4 percentage points up from the 39.5% achieved in 2011. Data for every one of Scotland’s 32 local authorities are available on SEPA’s website.

WASTE DATA COLLECTION

Data on waste are collected to monitor policy effectiveness, and to support policy development, particularly commitments in the Scottish Government’s Making Things Last – A Circular Economy Strategy for Scotland.

Further details on the methodology used to produce the figures are provided in the “Household waste” section of the annual Waste Data Quality Reports.

The figures are accurate at the time of publication, however data may be updated if further revisions are necessary. Normally these revisions will be published concurrent with the next official release.

Jo Zwitserlood, Head of Materials at the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), said: “Recycling is a real Scottish success story and is a simple daily step we all can take to build a more sustainable Scotland.

“Reducing the amount of waste we generate, and keeping products and materials in use for as long as possible through re-use and recycling, will help Scotland tackle the climate emergency. This is reflected in the household waste data published today, that shows the reducing carbon impact of our waste.

“The most successful countries in the 21st century will move from a traditional ‘take, make and dispose’ model to a resource efficient, circular economy where materials that would have been waste, are now valued as a useful resource. It is therefore extremely encouraging to see a continued increase in the amount of household waste recycled, and the amount of waste going to landfill at its lowest since records began.   

“With its globally ambitious circular economy strategy and investment in infrastructure that will extract maximum value from materials through remanufacturing and recycling, Scotland is well placed to realise the environmental and economic opportunities for our nation and its people.”

Covid-19 lockdown inspires Scots to take more care of the environment

A whopping 95% of Scottish consumers say that since the Covid-19 outbreak, it is more important than ever to take care of our planet and the environment, a European-wide study by drink can recycling initiative, Every Can Counts, has found.

The stats show that Scots are leading the way in the UK for feeling the importance of recycling in current times.

The majority (94%) of survey respondents in Scotland said it is an urgent task to tackle recycling, while 96% said that considering recycling and its importance for the planet is an obligation of all citizens and consumers, not just world leaders.

Despite this however, the survey also discovered that in these uncertain economic times, 55% of Scottish consumers say that the economy is currently a priority over the environment.

In the wake of Sir David Attenborough’s latest film, A Life On Our Planet, as well as his joining Instagram at 94 and achieving one million followers in record-breaking time, it seems environmental issues are finally coming to the fore.

Within the film’s poignant and hard-hitting introduction, Attenborough says, “The natural world is fading. This film is my witness statement and my vision for the future. The story of how we came to make this, our greatest mistake, and how, if we act now, we can yet put it right.” 

It seems this seed has been well and truly planted in the minds of Scots with 73% stating that, during the pandemic, they have recycled more than ever, suggesting that the increase in time spent at home has made it easier for people to do their bit and recycle more. Only 48% however, said they often or always recycle when at work and less when out and about at 45%.

Commenting on the figures, Rick Hindley, Director of Every Can Counts says: “The figures imply that given the time and correct resources, we’re all more than capable of recycling everything we can.

“It’s when we’re out and about or at work that it becomes more difficult. The findings from the survey also suggest that Covid-19 has prompted us to consider our own fragility as human beings and look at the way we treat the planet, our home.

“The Covid-19 outbreak has of course brought about devastating effects. However, as we can see from these survey results, one positive is that people are beginning to sit and up and take notice of the vital environmental issues we are facing. We do not have forever to rectify the damage that has been done to our planet. The time is now.

“Recycling – and especially recycling drink cans given that aluminium is infinitely recyclable – is something we can all do to help the planet. Over the past five years, the UK recycling rate for drink cans has increased by 16% to an impressive 76%. Our vision is to get that to 100%.”

Scottish respondents echoed this call to action with a massive 92% saying they would like to do more when it comes to recycling and 84% feeling that more needs to be done in general to encourage recycling amongst consumers.

Of the 12 UK regions surveyed as part of the wider European study, Greater London, Yorkshire & Humberside, the South West and South East came up top when quantifying the importance of recycling with scores of 80% plus, closely followed by Scotland and the West Midlands with scores of 79%.

It appears that the challenges of Covid-19 have further inspired Scots to care for the environment. 95% of Scots agreed that Covid-19 has made taking care of the planet and recycling more important than ever, the highest level of agreement recorded across all 12 UK regions, shared with the East of England.

Below: UK regions ranked in order of agreeing with the following statement: After Covid-19 it is more important than ever to take care of our planet / environment and recycle. 

1.     Scotland 95%

2.     East of England 95%

3.     North West 93%

4.     Northern Ireland 93%

5.     Greater London 91%

6.     North East 91%

7.     Yorkshire & Humberside 91%

8.     East Midlands 90%

9.     West Midlands 89%

10.  South West 89%

11.  Wales 86%

12.  South East 84%

To see an Every Can Counts brand video, visit: YouTube. 

Packet racket! Recyling confusion

Two-thirds of branded grocery packaging not fully recyclable

Crisps, chocolate and cheese are among the worst foods for packaging recyclability, with brands including Pringles, Cadbury and Babybel failing to do their bit for the environment, a new Which? investigation has revealed.

The consumer champion analysed 89 of the UK’s best-selling branded groceries and found only a third (34%) had packaging that was fully recyclable in household collections. To make matters worse, around four in 10 (41%) items had no labelling to show if they could be recycled, leaving consumers none the wiser about how to dispose of them.

Which? looked at 10 different categories of items including popular brands of chocolate, fizzy drinks, crisps, yoghurts, drinks, cheese, bread loaves and cereals. Which? experts broke down each item’s packaging into its component parts, weighed them and assessed whether each piece could be easily recycled.

The recyclability of different types of groceries varied hugely. The worst category by some distance was crisps, with only three per cent of packaging recyclable in household collections. This included Pringles and their notoriously hard to recycle combined material tube. 

The tube’s plastic lid made it the only product in the category to have at least one component that was recyclable in household recycling. However it wasn’t labelled to say so and the tube design is far heavier than any other packaging in this category – so it would take more energy to transport.

The best of a bad lot in this category was a Quavers multipack. None of the individual packets of crisps were easily recyclable, but the outer bag, at least, was recyclable at supermarket collection points. However it wasn’t labelled to say so, meaning consumers could mistakenly throw it out with everyday rubbish.

While significantly better than bagged snacks, when Which? took apart and analysed cheese packaging it found that a third (34%) was not easily recyclable. Snack packs of Cathedral City and Babybel were packaged in plastic net bags, which are not only difficult to recycle but can also cause problems if they get caught up in the recycling machines accidentally.

Cheestrings were also found to be problematic, with packaging that was not recyclable in household collections.

At the other end of the spectrum, packaging for Dairylea Cheese Triangles, Seriously Spreadable Cheese and Laughing Cow triangles was all recyclable – but all had this important information missing from their labels at the time of testing. Philadelphia Soft White Cheese’s packaging is recyclable and was correctly labelled.

Among the chocolate snacks Which? looked at, almost a third of packaging was not recyclable. Favourites like four finger KitKats, Cadbury Bitsa Wispa, M&Ms, Cadbury Dairy Milk bars and Cadbury Twirl Bites were all found to not be recyclable in household recycling at all.

The Galaxy Smooth bar had 100 per cent recyclable packaging, but due to a lack of labelling risked being thrown out in the same way as its less eco-friendly counterparts.

None of the bread packaging Which? looked at was recyclable in household collections. But it was recyclable if taken to supermarket collection points alongside plastic bags. All of it was labelled.

The most recyclable category was fizzy drinks, which were found to be 100 per cent recyclable. All 10 items Which? looked at in this category were correctly labelled. 

Juice drinks were mainly recyclable in household collections, with the exception of Ocean Spray and Capri-Sun. Ocean Spray cartons are like Pringles tubes in that they are made of mixed materials that make them difficult to recycle in household collections, while Capri-Sun’s foil pouches are not recyclable.

In a separate survey, Which? found that the recyclability of grocery packaging is important to eight in 10 respondents (79%), and two thirds (67%) often or always look for recycling info on grocery packaging before deciding how to dispose of it.

Some brands are trialling more environmentally sound options. Pringles is testing a new recycled paper tube at several UK Tesco stores, which if successful could be pushed out more widely.

In response to Which?’s findings, some manufacturers said that food waste had a larger carbon footprint than plastic waste and claimed that moving away from traditional packaging to recyclable alternatives could lead to compromised, stale or damaged food. Some also said that their packaging was recyclable at TerraCycle collection points.

But Which? believes that a lack of consistency and hugely varied approaches to grocery packaging shows that some manufacturers could be doing a lot more to ensure the materials used to package their products do not end up in landfill.

The responsible use of the right materials to package food is just one part of the problem. In order to tackle unnecessary waste, products also need to be correctly labelled with clear instructions of how packaging should be disposed of.

The recurring inconsistencies Which? has found on the way groceries are labelled when it comes to recyclability shows how confusing it is to navigate for even for the most environmentally conscious consumers.

Which? is calling on the government to make recycling labelling simple, clear and mandatory, so that all consumers are able to make informed decisions when buying groceries.

Natalie Hitchins, Which? Head of Home Products and Services, said: “Consumers are crying out for brands that take sustainability seriously and products that are easy to recycle, but for any real difference to be made to the environment, manufacturers need to maximise their use of recyclable and recycled materials and ensure products are correctly labelled. 

“To reduce the waste that goes to landfill, the government must make labelling mandatory, simple and clear, enabling shoppers to know exactly how to dispose of the packaging on the products they consume.”