UK households are throwing away an estimated 1.6 billion pieces of plastic packaging every week, according to a recent comprehensive survey.
The Big Plastic Count, organised by Everyday Plastic, involved over 68,000 individuals across the country meticulously recording their plastic waste between 9 and 15 March.
The findings, released on Wednesday, revealed participants collectively binned 1.5 million pieces during the week-long observation.
When extrapolated to represent all UK households, this figure escalates to nearly 1.6 billion pieces weekly, amounting to approximately 82 billion annually.
This year's count marks the third such initiative, following previous efforts in 2022 and 2024. \Two years ago, a larger sample size, supported by Greenpeace, suggested an even higher weekly disposal rate of 1.7 billion pieces, or 90 billion annually.
A significant 82 per cent of the plastic waste recorded originated from food and drink packaging, with fruit and vegetables being the most prevalent category.
Everyday Plastic estimates that 13 billion pieces of plastic packaging from fruit and vegetables alone is being discarded by UK households each year.
The survey highlighted that Tesco and Sainsbury’s together accounted for almost half (46 per cent) of the fruit and vegetable packaging counted.
Nearly two-thirds of fruit and vegetable packaging were made from soft film plastic, which is difficult to recycle at scale in the UK and most ends up being incinerated.
Burning plastic can contribute to air pollution and climate change, while waste incinerators often tend to be near more deprived communities, further driving health inequality.
The UK also exports waste, including plastic, to poorer countries with often less developed waste infrastructure.
Daniel Webb, founder of Everyday Plastic, said plastic waste has become a “national crisis” and argued that reducing production, rather than just increasing recycling, is key to tackling the problem.
“The Big Plastic Count has again shown that plastic production is out of control, with billions of pieces of plastic being thrown away every week,” he said.
“Recycling cannot keep up with the volume being produced, and we’re incinerating more than ever. We can’t burn our way out of this.”
Everyday Plastic is calling on the Government to remove plastic packaging from uncut fruit and vegetables by 2030, stop the construction of new waste incinerators immediately and end the export of plastic waste to other countries.
Recent efforts to reach an international plastics treaty stalled multiple times amid divides over whether there should be binding global limits on plastic production.
Beth Gardiner, journalist and author of Plastic Inc: Big Oil, Big Money And The Plan To Trash Our Future, said: “Even as so many of us try to use less plastic, fossil fuel and petrochemical companies push more of it into our lives every year.
“Now, with clean energy and electric vehicles threatening its profits, Big Oil is pouring billions of dollars into its plans to double, and eventually triple, plastic production.”
She added that the plastic count means tens of thousands of people have helped to shine a “critically important spotlight on that dangerous strategy”.
The next survey will take place next year in 2027, Everyday Plastic said.
Take excess profits from energy giants to give customers £183 back, think tank says
Wildfire survivors who lost their homes could face another blow from taxes on settlement payouts
Sainsbury’s to shed light on Iran war impact amid recent sales growth
Tesco to ditch barcodes on food range as it hails ‘revolutionary’ move
UK hosting countries for talks on Strait of Hormuz mission
UK schools could lose £288m in funding due to falling pupil numbers, watchdog warns
