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Drinks Cartons Kerbside Collection Hits 40 Percent

17 February 2012

Latest figures from the Alliance for Beverage Cartons & the Environment (ACE) UK show that two out of five UK local authorities now collect beverage cartons for recycling from kerbside

Bristol City and Bath & North East Somerset are the latest councils to introduce kerbside collection for beverage cartons, bringing the total figure to 162 out of 406 nationally.

Richard Hands, chief executive of ACE UK, said: "Since the beginning of 2011 the number of UK local authorities collecting cartons for recycling from the kerbside has risen from 31 percent to 40 percent and we expect this trend to continue. By comparison, only 4 percent of local authorities collected cartons as part of their kerbside services in 2006.

Overall, 88 percent of households in the UK now have access to carton recycling - either through kerbside collection or the industry's own bring-bank system - compared to just 20 percent in 2006. This increase follows significant investment from ACE UK members, Elopak, SIG Combibloc and Tetra Pak, and years of working closely with local authorities and consumer groups.

Linda Crichton, head of collections & quality programme at WRAP, commented: "ACE UK continues to demonstrate real commitment to working with local authorities to increase kerbside collection of beverage cartons. These efforts are highly commendable and will lead to further increases in the carton recycling rate. We will continue to support the carton industry on their strategy to increase the rate further still."

Beverage cartons are easily recycled using a simple pulping process, where the paperboard and non-fibre layers are separated and turned into new materials. The wood fibres can be used to produce new high-strength paper products, such as envelopes and carrier bags, while the polymer and foil layers can be recycled or used for energy recovery.

www.ace-uk.co.uk

Darrel Moore