Cartons To Be Sent To Europe For Recycling

Under Simpler Recycling, around 89% of local authorities now collect cartons for onward reprocessing, compared with 66% at the start of 2025. Yet while collection has moved forward, the next stage of the recycling journey has become more complicated – and decidedly less ‘green’.

The scheme will come into effect in October 2027, but the operational requirements will not appear overnight. Fleet capacity, service planning and vehicle availability need to be considered before demand increases, not once services are already under pressure.

The closure of the UK’s only dedicated drinks carton reprocessing plant means cartons collected through UK recycling services are now going to be sent to France, Germany and Spain. The shift highlights the growing gap between increased collection volumes and our sovereign ability to handle them.

“The commitment to recycling is clearly there,” says Neil Jeremiah, Managing Director at Endurance. “Councils are adapting their services and householders are playing their part. The challenge is ensuring the infrastructure exists to complete that journey within the UK.

“It is difficult to see how we can build a truly circular economy if the materials we collect need to leave the country to be processed elsewhere. Exporting can provide an immediate solution, but it also shows why protecting existing infrastructure and developing new homegrown reprocessing capability must remain a priority.

“One of the challenges with essential infrastructure is that policy change can create demand quickly, but developing the capability to support that demand takes longer. Resilient systems also need flexibility, with alternative routes available when critical parts of the chain change.

“Meanwhile, gap-filling arrangements like this threaten to undermine householders’ faith that their efforts are making a difference. It’s a hard sell to have them believe shipping cartons to Europe is still a ‘green’ solution.”

Brits have shown they will recycle. Councils are investing in increasingly sophisticated collection operations. The government must ensure we have the capability to make that effort count.

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