Recycle Today, Reuse Tomorrow: The next step to a Circular Economy
Tags: Sustainability, Circulareconomy, Recycling, Waste, Technology

Recycle Today, Reuse Tomorrow: The next step to a Circular Economy Reath Apr 9·4 min read

As of 2019/20, the current recycling rate of UK households stands at 45.5%. With a “multi-stream” recycling scheme where citizens know which containers to put their recyclables in, and an increase in information on what items can be recycled, the UK has become more environmentally conscious about the benefits of recycling in society. So much so that the British Plastics Association (BPA) estimated that the UK could recycle 3.5 times as much plastic by 2030, one plastic bottle at a time.

And yet, the reduction of waste in the UK is not where it needs to be, falling short of the 50% target set by the European Commission. The impact of COVID-19 on waste production, including the growth of PPE equipment and general waste, goes to highlight that a more effective solution is needed in further evolving the UK’s understanding and involvement in waste management.

Reusability is a system that has yet to enter the public vernacular, though I’d argue many already practice it on a small scale; those ‘bags-for-life’ you have stacked up in the bottom draw, that Highland Springs bottle you have refilled five times? All small-scale practices of reuse. What makes reuse different from recycling is that instead of taking raw materials and making something else, reuse involves using the item multiple times for its intended purpose, which it can withstand through its design.

Why is Reuse Important?

According to a report by the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), the Local Government Association (LGA) estimates that if we reuse an additional 660,000 tonnes of goods, we could save councils more than £60M a year in Landfill Tax, with a £435M increase in economic growth per year.

Reuse, along with reduction and recycling, are all practices needed to be adopted if we are to inch closer to a more circular economy. Such an economy is regenerative by design, and deviates from the current linear economy of finite, single-use resources. It aims to keep products in use as much as possible, consequently reducing the amount of waste we produce, this goes beyond the economy and contributes towards our global climate targets.

A proactive example of reuse facilitating this new economical approach can again be seen in CIWM report, in which they highlight the research done by Zero Waste Scotland (ZWS); around 89,000 tonnes of material, including 12,000 tonnes of furniture, 9,500 tonnes of electrical items, and 66,000 tonnes of textiles were being reused with a turnout of £244M. Job creation also benefits here, ZWS finding that a total of 6,000 people were employed full-time in the reuse sector, a further 13,000 involved in volunteering at some capacity.

The UK government has put forward a new Resources and Waste Strategy which will help move closer to a circular economy, to keep resources in use for longer, stressing on the collective power of individuals as well as businesses to “reduce, reuse and recycle.” This is all in effort to eliminate avoidable waste by 2050, with a dramatic reduction of plastic waste entering the environment by 2025.

The Action of Big Business and large-scale reuse

Now, it is a tall order foregrounding the responsibilities of individuals and equating them to that of businesses and corporations. According to Statista, the annual global plastic production stands at 359 million metric tons, the majority coming from packaging. The biggest offenders come in the world’s most recognizable brands, Coca-Cola produces 2.9 million metric tons of plastic packaging a year, PepsiCo with 2.3 million, and Nestlé with 1.7 million. Compare this to the estimated 31kg of plastic packaging produced by one person per year. Individual waste is not equal to big business waste.

Fortunately, due to the outpouring of public awareness, businesses are becoming more aware of the need to adopt more sustainable and circular practices when dealing with waste reduction, especially when it comes to plastic packaging. In terms of food packaging, the fast-food chain Burger King has unveiled a reusable packaging system where customers can make a small deposit charge which can later be refunded to them when the customer returns boxes or cups to the restaurant. Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, has made the ambitious pledge to halve the amount of plastic packaging they produce by more than 100,000 tons by 2025, making sure 100% of their packaging will be designed to be fully reusable, recyclable, and compostable.

What Reath is doing, and the move to reuse

Such a pledge from Unilever is outstanding considering the main reasons why so many companies find it so difficult to reuse or reduce their plastic waste is because so much packaging was designed with single-use in mind. One of the most important steps in progressing to a circular economy is designing products where the aim is reuse. This goes beyond Highland Spring bottles when it comes to large-scale reusability.

One tool businesses are employing to achieve this goal is through the use of technology. From using data to help waste producers network with waste haulers, to designing packaging to individual consumer preferences, companies are making it possible to reduce their waste by taking a more innovative approach to how they use and distribute packaging.

Want to learn more?

Reath software is facilitating the shift to large-scale reusability. Download our whitepaper here.