Are you ready to recycle?

By WHAT MORE UK

Recycling is becoming ever more important, with people considering their own impact on the environment in their households. In the UK, the Government announced a Net Zero Strategy, which set out official plans to meet a net zero carbon target by 2050. It takes less energy, and fewer emissions, to recycle things we already have than it does to make something from scratch – which is why recycling has such an impact on carbon targets.

We save 18 million tonnes of CO2 a year by recycling, the same environmental impact as taking 12 million cars off the road – a huge amount. Almost 9 out of 10 of us are already recycling in the UK. But 54% of households still put items in the general rubbish that could be recycled.

A quick guide to things that can be recycled is paper, card, plastic bottles, plastic pots, tubs and trays, glass and metal packaging, cartons and food waste. Many local councils provide bins, sacks or tubs to collect the waste together ready to be picked up separately from the normal general rubbish and taken for recycling. What More UK sell a series of four colour coded Recycle It bins, so waste can easily be sorted in the kitchen before moving to the outdoor bin. Even Christmas trees can be recycled, and many local councils take them away to be chipped and reused in local parks.

What More UK, which is already a zero to landfill company, was prompted to develop its Upcycled range as a response to the growing amount of plastic ending up in landfill or worse, in the ocean. Wham Upcycled is an award winning range of housewares, which features all their most popular lines, as an eco-friendly range manufactured from 100% recycled & recyclable plastic.  

In the UK it is estimated that five million tonnes of plastic is used every year, nearly half of which is packaging. The UK Government brought in measures designed to benefit the environment, including the complete ban on 1 October 2020 of single-use plastic straws, cotton buds, and drink stirrers in England, except for exempt uses.

The UK Government additionally plan to introduce a new Plastic Packaging Tax, on packaging containing less than 30% recycled plastic, to be paid for by the manufacturer, and starting from April 2022. What More are proud that none of their products will be subject to this tax, as their products including food storage and others are very much intended to be multi use, and reduce the need for single use products.

Company director Tony Grimshaw OBE, commented: “What More have a focus on recycling and reusing materials and we are proud of our credentials. 10,000 tonnes of plastic used in our manufacturing processes is fully recycled already. We support any new guidelines that help us on the way to achieving net zero, and will continue to devise new products to help every household recycle and re use.”

What More UK is one of the largest houseware manufacturers in the UK. It’s the organisation behind the popular brand Wham, available in every major UK supermarket and a further 1600 independent retailers. They manufacture storage boxes and housewares of all kinds including bakeware, around-the-sink items, products for the home laundry, utility room, and items for the garden such as planters and troughs. What More’s products are all made in East Lancashire and are sold in 76 countries around the world. More can be seen on their website here: www.whatmoreuk.com