Simpler Recycling

We’ve been through the details of ‘Simpler Recycling’ plans for England and have taken out some of the key highlights:

All local authorities must collect the same recyclable waste streams for recycling or composting from households. The recyclable waste streams include paper and card, plastic, glass, metal, food waste, and garden waste.

All premises that generate ‘household like’ waste, such as businesses, schools and hospitals, must make arrangements to have the same set of recyclable waste streams (with the exception of garden waste) collected.

The following materials must be collected in the dry recyclable waste streams, from both households and non-household municipal premises:

Glass

• Glass packaging including bottles and jars

Metal

• Steel and aluminium tins and cans
• Steel and aluminium aerosols
• Aluminium foil
• Aluminium food trays
• Steel and aluminium jars and bottle lids
• Aluminium tubes

Plastic

• Plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET, including amorphous, recycled PET), polypropylene (PP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE)
• Pots, tubs and trays made of PET (including amorphous, recycled and crystalline PET), PP (including expanded PP) and polyethylene (PE)
• PE and PP plastic tubes larger than 50mm x 50mm
• Cartons for food, drink and other liquids
• Plastic film packaging and plastic bags made of mono-polyethylene (mono-PE), mono-polypropylene (mono-PP) and mixed polyolefins PE and PP, including those metallised through vacuum or vapour deposition

 Paper and card

All paper and card except:

• Paper and card that contains glitter or foil
• Paper that is laminated*
• Stickers and sticky paper
• Padded lined envelopes
• Paperback and hardback books
• Wallpaper

Food waste

• All food intended for human or household pet consumption, regardless of whether it has any nutritional value
• Biodegradable material resulting from the processing or preparation of food, including inedible food parts such as bones, eggshells, fruit and vegetable skins, tea bags and coffee grounds

Biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging materials – do not require the separate collection.

*We are aware that there is some concern at the moment regarding the government’s recent announcement that laminated paper will not be collected under the Simpler Recycling proposals. We believe that the implications of this have not been fully considered and we are aware that industry is challenging this decision due to the scale of the impact. Therefore, we do not intend to make any changes to our current labelling rules for paper and card packaging until this has been clarified.

Dry recyclable waste streams

The dry recyclable waste streams (excluding plastic films) must be collected from households by 31 March 2026.

Recyclable plastic film must be collected by 31 March 2027. In the lead up to this, front-of-store and postal takeback schemes will continue to be a route for collection.

Food waste

Food waste collection must be collected from all households in England, including flats, by 31 March 2026.

Dry recyclable materials (except plastic film)

Households: by the end of the financial year in which EPR for packaging commences – by 31 March 2026

Businesses and relevant non-domestic premises: by 31 March 2025

Micro-firms: by 31 March 2027

Plastic film

Households, businesses, non-domestic premises and micro-firms: by 31 March 2027

Food waste

Households: by 31 March 2026 – unless a transitional arrangement applies

Businesses and non-domestic premises: by 31 March 2025

Micro-firms: by 31 March 2027

Garden waste

Households: by 31 March 2026

These dates lead us to believe that the original dates for labelling will stand. These are March 2026 for all packaging except films, which will need to be labelled by March 2027.