The average Brit will get through 242 plastic bottles, 109 single-use coffee cups and 209 crisp packets each year, according to research. Research polling 2,000 UK adults revealed the typical person’s annual waste also includes 378 snack wrappers, 251 cans, and 374 cardboard boxes or paper packets annually. It’s not just food and drink packaging piling up, as the UK will collectively throw away 468 million spray bottles from cleaning products and 520 million shampoo bottles every year.
As a result, the average Brit admits to throwing an estimated 30% of their recyclable items into general waste. This is potentially costing the economy more than £95m each year, as the recyclable materials which could have been otherwise sold on to manufacturers and generate money for the economy just end up in landfill or are incinerated. Stefano Rossi, packaging CEO at DS Smith, which commissioned the research, said: “There is an undeniable desire from the public to help with the climate crisis. But a lot of packaging is still not recyclable, and people are confused about what packaging goes into which bin.”
As many as 56% confessed to throwing things away with the general waste despite believing it could be recycled, with 32 per cent of these blaming unclear labelling. DS Smiths estimate this could be resulting in 2.6 million tonnes of recyclable materials going to landfill each year. At the other end of the spectrum are ‘wish-cyclers’ – the 30% of people who, faced with uncertainty over whether their boxes, bottles and containers can be recycled, put them in the recycling bin and hope for the best.
Source: Circular Online
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