Statistics released by Recycle Now show that through lockdown the UK has become even more environmentally aware, with nearly 9 in 10 households saying they ‘regularly recycle’.
Coming out of lockdown, more people are prepared to change their lifestyles to help the environment: 73 per cent, up from 68 per cent in 2019. Ninety three per cent of UK households believe that ‘everyone has a responsibility to help towards cleaning up the environment’.
Recycle Now is the government-funded national recycling campaign for England, managed by its waste advisory body Wrap and used by more than 90% of English authorities. The figures are published at the start of the 17th annual Recycle Week from research during lockdown and a bigger survey in July.
Which items can and can’t be recycled?
Search on an item for disposal in the Recycling A-Z.
Recycle Now aims to help people to recycle more things, more often. Six out of ten of us now describe ourselves as committed recyclers, compared to less than half when the campaign began in 2004. The figures come from research carried out during lockdown and an omnibus survey completed in July.
Food waste
A new week of action will be launched in March 2021 to wake the nation up to the environmental consequences of wasting food.
The inaugural Food Waste Action Week will run from Monday 1 to Sunday 7 March 2021, and will bring together organisations from retailers to local authorities, restaurants to manufacturers, and beyond.
WRAP will work with a variety of partners to show that wasted food is an issue that affects everyone – and the planet. Wasted food contributes 8–10% of total man-made greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and roughly one third of food produced around the world is wasted.
Video: top tips for food recycling at home.
