RECAP News
06/04/2009 - New labelling scheme gives extra advice for local recyclers
Residents in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough will be able to check product packaging for information about whether it can be recycled or not.
Leading retailers including Marks & Spencer, Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Boots and the Co-op have joined forces to introduce the labelling system which will roll-out gradually over the coming months, providing consumers with standardised ‘on-pack’ recycling information for the first time.
The scheme makes significant strides towards providing clearer information to consumers on recycling. Product ranges included in the scheme will feature one or more of three standard symbols showing whether each major component of its packaging is ‘widely recycled’, ‘not currently recycled’ or only recycled in some areas, where the instruction is to ‘check local recycling’.
In Cambridgeshire and Peterborough residents are able to recycle a wide range of packaging materials. To find out what materials can be recycled locally, you can check ‘Your local Recycling Scheme’ on our website or view the pages on waste and recycling on your local authority’s website.
Councillor Peter Murphy, Chair of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Waste Partnership (RECAP) said:
“For over ten years our residents have achieved some of the highest recycling rates in the country. However, we are aware that the variety of different materials used in packaging can be confusing for people when it comes to sorting their waste. This new labelling system will really help by providing clear information for consumers on what packaging can and can’t be recycled. It is particularly encouraging to see retailers working with us to help increase recycling. We would like to encourage our residents to recycle as much as they can, making the most of the guidance from these new labels.”
Phillip Ward, Director for Local Government Services at the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) said:
“It’s possible to recycle a wider range of materials than you might think and the range is increasing all the time. By improving the information provided to consumers, the new recycling labels make it easier for consumers to know what they can recycle. We know that consumers want to recycle more of their packaging and we expect the labels to help them to do so. We estimate that we are currently recycling only about a third of our household packaging so there’s real scope for all of us to recycle more.”
“Coordinated by the British Retail Consortium, and supported by Britain’s top retailers, and many major brands this scheme makes significant strides towards providing clearer information to consumers on recycling.”
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