Christmas is a time of excess – more food, more presents, more packaging. And that also means we produce more waste.
Have a look at our top tips to stay sustainable and make the most of your waste this Christmas.
After being such an important part of the festive period, your Christmas tree definitely deserves a proper send off. Find out how to get rid of your Christmas tree.
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Have a more sustainable Christmas (while also giving back) by getting pre-loved, repaired and upcycled gifts from our Renew Shops, Online Shop, or our eBay page!
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Recycling Centres are usually busy during the Christmas period, so plan your visit. If you are using, a van you will need a permit. Get your application in before 19th December.
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Have a Greener Christmas with preloved gifts and smarter recycling, and more. Read the blog for our top tips!
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Some small electrical items and toys contain hidden batteries; you can recycle them to any recycling centre. Don’t put batteries in any bin at home as they can cause fires.
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Sick of wasting food every year? We’ve pulled together a few tips to help you freeze your festive food bills and make sure you’re not wasting food this Christmas:
FIND OUT MORENot all wrapping paper is actually paper. Some is made with plastic or foil. To check if it can be recycled, try the scrunch test. If you can scrunch the paper into a ball and it stays scrunched, you can recycle it.
Before recycling your cardboard boxes, take out all plastic packaging, bubble wrap and polystyrene. They are all made with plastic and can’t be recycled, so put them in your general waste bin.
Cards and wrapping paper with glitter can’t be recycled. This is because glitter is made from plastic and can’t be separated out in the recycling process. Put it into general waste.
Decorations like tinsel and baubles can’t be recycled. Plastic baubles are often made from materials that are not widely recycled in the UK. Broken decorations should go into your general waste bin. If unwanted decorations aren’t damaged and can be reused, donate them to your local charity shop or take them to your local recycling centre.
If your Christmas crackers are made of paper, and don’t have glitter, pop them in your paper and card bin.
Christmas tree lights, wires, cables and other electrical items can’t go in any of your bins at home. You can recycle them at your local recycling centre. Or find a drop off point through Recycle Your Electricals.
If you have used batteries, or items with hidden batteries, you can recycle them at any recycling centre. Don’t put batteries in any bin at home as they can cause fires.
Most plastic packaging goes in your general waste bin, or you can put them in the non-recyclable waste container at a recycling centre.
Some shops and supermarkets allow you to return unwanted packaging for disposal. Supermarkets also will take plastic wrapping like bread bags, plastic carrier bags etc.
After learning that more than 22 million pumpkins are wasted each Halloween, I challenged myself to see how many meals I could make from one pumpkin.
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When these things are thrown away instead of recycled, valuable resources are lost forever.
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Download your free bin guide. Keep it handy on your phone or print and pop it on the fridge or by the bins.
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