Recycle Week takes place each year in October, and is a campaign held by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to promote recycling across the UK.
Read on to find out why we should do more to recycle, and discover some of our top recycling hacks and tips.
Why do we need to recycle?
Recycling reduces the need for landfills as well as the need for extracting, refining and processing raw materials - all of which create substantial air and water pollution.
In turn, this helps to save energy, reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions and helping to tackle climate change.
It’s important for us to think about what we throw away – seeing it not as waste but as an opportunity. There are lots of small steps we can take to help climate change at home.
How to reduce waste
Next time you are considering throwing something away, think about the four R’s…. Reduce, Reuse, Repair and Recycle
Reduce waste at the source: While shopping, look for options that use less packaging and opt for loose items like fruit and vegetables that you can carry in a reusable bag. You can also cut out paper towels or napkins by using washable clothes instead, and ditch single use plastic by carrying reusable cups or water bottles. Once you’re in the mindset of reducing waste, you will start to see opportunities everywhere!
Reuse items where you can: If packaging is unavoidable, look for ways you can re-use it rather than throwing it away. Those plastic takeaway containers make great sandwich boxes to take to work or to put in the kids’ lunch boxes instead of single-use plastic sandwich bags.
Recycle: Double check you’re using the correct recycling container for each item to avoid contaminating the material. You can usually download helpful guides from your council’s website.
Top tips on reducing waste at home
We spoke to sustainability influencer Katey Bamber of @my_plastic_free_home for her tips on living more sustainably at home.
1. CHOOSE LESS PACKAGING
Choosing products that have less packaging will undoubtedly make a difference in the amount of waste we produce. Choose aluminium over plastic, buy naked veggies and take them all home without using the plastic bags.
2. SHOP LOCALLY
Shopping at your local grocery store, butchers and bakery means that not only are you buying local food (with fewer air miles) but you’re also putting your money back into your community.
3. INVEST IN REUSABLES
Think about the disposable products you use around your home or when you are out and about and see if you can replace them with something that can be reused - i.e. grocery bags, coffee cups or reusable paper towels.
4. THINK ‘DO I REALLY NEED THIS?’
It’s so easy for us to go online and order anything we want for next day delivery (even same day delivery in some cases!). The big question is – do we really need everything that we are buying? A good way around this situation is to write down what you want to buy and wait a week before you commit to buying it.
5. BUY LESS, CHOOSE WELL, MAKE IT LAST
Invest in something of good quality that will last. Whether it’s clothes, a kitchen appliance or furniture, think about the life span of the product. Buying quality doesn’t have to be more expensive either. If you buy pre-loved, and if you’ve been resisting all of those impulse buys, you’ll be saving money too.
Top tips on reducing food waste
Tessa Clarke, CEO and co-founder of OLIO (the UK’s leading sharing app) shared five tips with us to help reduce the amount of food you waste at home
1. SHOP WITH A PLAN
One of the most effective things you can do is plan your weekly meals. I also recommend having one ‘cupboard meal’ per week; that way if your plans change you won’t waste the fresh food you’ve just bought.
2. STORE YOUR FOOD PROPERLY
Some of my favourite food storage tips and tricks are that tomatoes should never be kept in the fridge; potatoes and onions should never be stored together; herbs should be kept like flowers in water; and popping a beeswax wrap/tin foil round the top of a bunch of bananas can slow their ripening by days.
Another top trick is to make your freezer your friend — it’s not just the obvious like bread and chicken that can be frozen; lots of other things such as milk, eggs and herbs can be too.
3. SERVE SMALLER PORTION SIZES
There’s a lot of truth in that old childhood saying “Your eyes are bigger than your stomach”. So it’s really important to serve smaller portion sizes if you want to reduce your food waste — a simple hack here is to use smaller plates.
4. SAVE YOUR LEFTOVERS
If you’ve made too much food, save your leftovers for another day - the flavours tend to develop after marinating for a day or two. Having plenty of storage containers is key to making this one work.
5. SHARE WITH YOUR NEIGHBOURS
If all else fails, and you find yourself with spare food you don’t want or need, try popping it onto the OLIO app for a neighbour to pick up. Half of all the food is requested in under 21 minutes, and over 18 million portions have been given away so far! Not only does it feel good to share, you could also make a neighbour’s day.
Facts about household recycling
- Paper: If every person in the UK recycled just 10% more paper, we would save approximately five million trees each year.
- Plastics: Around eight million metric tonnes of plastic enter the sea each year.
- Cardboard: Approximately five billion corrugated boxes are used every year in the UK equating to around 83 per person.
- Glass: An average UK household uses around 500 glass jars and bottles annually.
- Tins: If tins are not recycled, they can take 80-100 years to begin decomposing.
What can you recycle?
As well as the usual and well-known items (clean plastic, paper, cardboard, cans, etc), here are some items you might not have thought about recycling.
- Make-up products: Some cosmetic shops now recycle used makeup product packaging. Do your research and see if there is a scheme near you.
- Glasses: Ask your local optician if they recycle old glasses.
- CDs: CDs are accepted at some local recycling centres but this service does vary across the country. It's best to check with your local council.
- Electrical items: It’s important to dispose of electrical items safely as sending them to landfill can be hazardous. Check the Recycle Now website for more information.
- Clothing: Next time you have a wardrobe clear-out take your old clothes to charity shops, donation banks or recycling plants.
- Christmas Trees: Most local councils will collect Christmas trees free of charge to be recycled and some charities offer a collection service in return for a small donation.
To read about what we're doing as a company, read our waste policy and visit where better begins.
