Resources
This guide provides local authorities with information on the collection of household food waste as a means of diverting material from landfill or other residual waste treatment. The original guide was produced in 2009 and updated in 2016. This latest update for 2024 pulls together the findings from more recent studies and pilots conducted by WRAP and others.
- Food and drink
- Reducing and preventing food waste
- Collections & recycling
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Organics
- Local Authorities
Procurement guidance for local authorities in relation to procurement of specialist food waste collection vehicles, food waste collection containers and communal housings.
- Collections & recycling
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Organics
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- National government and departments
Food Waste Action Week will take place from the 18 – 24 March 2024, we will be encouraging citizens to 'Choose What You'll Use', highlighting the benefits of buying loose fruit and vegetables and inspiring people to do this wherever they can.
- Food and drink
- Reducing and preventing food waste
- Household food waste
- Behaviour change interventions
- Communicating with residents
- Retailers and brands
- Local Authorities
This webinar will help LAs get ready to introduce separate food waste collections.
- Food and drink
- Reducing and preventing food waste
- Measuring and reporting food waste
- Household food waste
- Collections & recycling
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Local Authorities
Restricted Residual Collections (whether a smaller bin or extended frequency in collections) are becoming increasingly common by Local Authorities, in a drive to increase and improve recycling performance, reduce residual waste arisings and focus citizen behaviour. This movement is particularly evident in Wales and Scotland, less so in England.
- Collections & recycling
- Consistency in collections
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Dry materials
- Local Authorities
The Recycling Tracker is an annual survey of UK households that gathers evidence on recycling attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour. It is the largest and longest running of its kind, having been undertaken by WRAP since 2004.
The survey uses boost sampling in Northern Ireland to provide a robust, enhanced sample of Northern Irish citizens. Fieldwork was undertaken online, from 20 - 30 March 2023. A total of 5,343 interviews were undertaken UK-wide with adults who have responsibility for dealing with the rubbish and recycling in the home. This included a sample of 563 adults in Northern Ireland. The sample matches the known profile of the Northern Ireland population, with quotas set on age, gender, region and social grade.
- Collections & recycling
- Consistency in collections
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Recycling in urban areas
- Dry materials
- Organics
- Manufacturers
- Retailers and brands
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- Packaging producers
- National government and departments
The Recycling Tracker is an annual survey of UK households that gathers evidence on recycling attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour. It is the largest and longest running of its kind, having been undertaken by WRAP since 2004.
Fieldwork was undertaken online from 20 - 30 March 2023. A total of 5,343 interviews were undertaken with UK adults who have responsibility for dealing with the rubbish and recycling in the home. The sample matches the known profile of the population, with quotas set on age, gender, region, social class, and ethnicity.
- Collections & recycling
- Consistency in collections
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Recycling in urban areas
- Dry materials
- Organics
- Manufacturers
- Retailers and brands
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- Packaging producers
- National government and departments
A webinar to support the launch of the Recycle Week 2023 toolkit and assets that are available to download and customise for local use in England and Northern Ireland.
- Collections & recycling
- Communicating with residents
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Recycling in urban areas
- Dry materials
- Manufacturers
- Retailers and brands
- Local Authorities
WRAP and Recycle Now's recycling tracker provides insights into UK citizen’s attitudes towards recycling as well as a greater understanding of their recycling related behaviours. It is an annual survey of UK citizens that gathers evidence on recycling attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour. It is the largest and longest running of its kind, having been undertaken by WRAP since 2004.
- Collections & recycling
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Dry materials
- Organics
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- National government and departments
- Non-governmental organisations
WRAP and Recycle Now's recycling tracker provides insights into UK citizen’s attitudes towards recycling as well as a greater understanding of their recycling related behaviours. It is an annual survey of UK citizens that gathers evidence on recycling attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour. It is the largest and longest running of its kind, having been undertaken by WRAP since 2004.
- Collections & recycling
- Consistency in collections
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Recycling in urban areas
- Dry materials
- Organics
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- National government and departments
With government plans to introduce mandatory kerbside collections for films and flexibles by 2027 there is a growing need for a consistent terminology to effectively communicate to citizens. Between March 2020 and October 2022 WRAP undertook three rounds of citizen testing to measure the clarity and effectiveness of a wide range in terminology, with a clear preference presenting itself, as well as key principles for communicating positive recycling behaviour.
- Eliminating problem plastics
- The UK Plastics Pact
- Film and flexible packaging
- Waste management and end markets
- Behaviour change interventions
- Collections & recycling
- Consistency in collections
- Service design
- Communicating with residents
- Contamination prevention
- Collections and sorting
- Kerbside collection
- Recycling in urban areas
- Manufacturers
- Retailers and brands
- Waste management and reprocessors
- Local Authorities
- Packaging producers
- Trade associations
- National government and departments
- Non-governmental organisations
This webinar introduced the new Food Waste Action Week 2023 toolkit and assets. It ran through the assets that are now available to download so that partners can start planning how to support the campaign this year.
Recycle Now also presented the results and impact of Recycle Week 2022.
- Reducing and preventing food waste
- Household food waste
- Communicating with residents
- Retailers and brands
- Local Authorities