In March 2025, the UK government issued new legislation explaining how businesses, charities, and public sector organisations should handle their waste disposal practices.
These rules were created to encourage businesses to cut down on rubbish while also making waste products easier to recycle, with the goal of creating a cleaner, more environmentally conscious way of processing waste.
In this article, we will explain how the simpler recycling legislation has updated existing waste removal practices, which businesses are obligated to follow this legislation, and what consequences may be faced when businesses are found to be out of compliance.
Simpler Recycling Legislation 2025
The goal of the simpler recycling legislation is to reduce overall waste while increasing the amount of materials that can be reclaimed and reused through recycling.
Often, when waste is sent to waste processing centres, it is unsuitable for recycling.
This could be for a variety of reasons: rubbish that you might think could be recycled, like glass cookware, is not always appropriate, and some recyclable materials arrive contaminated by mould, food debris, and other potentially harmful substances that can lead to waste being rejected.
In order to combat this, the Government’s legislation has placed the responsibility for sorting waste onto the organisations themselves.
In theory, this should reduce the amount of time taken to process recyclable material and provides the Government with enforcement options if organisations fail to comply.
Who Is Affected By The Simpler Recycling Legislation?
Almost every organisation in the UK is bound by the rules of the simpler recycling legislation, including businesses, charities and public sector organisations.
The only exemption currently in place is for what the Government considers ‘Micro-Firms’.
A ‘Micro-Firm’ is a business that has 10 or fewer total employees. Due to the extra demands that sorting waste places on businesses, especially small businesses, ‘Micro-Firms’ have been given until 31 March 2027 to comply with the legislation.
What Categories Of Waste Do I Need To Be Aware Of?
The simpler recycling legislation outlines three broad categories of waste:
- Recyclable Waste
- Food Waste
- Non-Recyclable Waste
Below, we will go into more depth about these categories and how they are treated.
Recyclable Waste
Recyclable waste refers to waste products that can be efficiently broken down and reclaimed for later use. The types of items that go into recyclable waste are:
- Glass, like empty drinks bottles and food jars
- Metals, including cans and empty food tins, empty aerosols (air fresheners, deodorants), aluminium foil, aluminium food trays and tubes
- Recyclable plastics, including empty food containers, bottles and cartons
- Paper and cardboard products, including newspapers, envelopes, boxes and cardboard food packaging
However, there are also items that can’t be recycled, but can be easily mistaken for recyclable waste. These items include books, ceramics, electronics (including vapes), and hygiene products like nappies, menstrual pads and cotton makeup pads.
And even when you have correctly identified recyclable waste, organisations also need to be mindful of waste contamination.
Contamination occurs either when non-recyclable waste is mixed in with recyclable waste or when recyclable waste is too dirty to process.
Under the simpler recycling legislation, businesses are obligated to take appropriate steps to minimise the chance of waste contamination. This can include rinsing our and washing food and drink containers, putting up appropriate signs explaining the rules regarding contamination, and monitoring employee behaviour to ensure that recyclable waste is not being contaminated.
In serious or repeat cases, your waste collector may refuse collection until your waste has been sorted appropriately.
Food Waste
One of the most significant changes to the recycling process outlined by the simpler recycling legislation is the introduction of rules regarding the processing of food waste.
The simple recycling rules indicate that food waste needs to be separated from general waste prior to collection by a waste collection service.
Although it is technically possible to manually sort this waste out, organisations are strongly encouraged to provide a separate food waste bin to prevent the need for sorting.
It is best practice to have food waste collected either weekly or fortnightly in order to prevent the build-up of foul odours and discourage pests.
Finally, it is also best practice to provide a food waste bin with a lid, in order to minimise the impact that food waste has on the immediate area.
The main waste that you would expect to see in designated food waste bins includes:
- Food waste from customer or staff meals
- Fruit waste, like banana skins and apple cores
- Coffee grounds and tea bags
- Waste from food preparation, such as onion skins
Although businesses that are engaged in food preparation, like restaurants and cafes, are likely to produce the greatest percentage of food waste, any company that produces 5kg or more of food waste a week is obligated to separate this waste out prior to collection.
Non-Recyclable Waste
Any waste that is not covered by either the ‘Recyclable Waste’ or ‘Food Waste’ categories should be considered non-recyclable waste, or ‘residual waste’.
Although non-recyclable waste covers a broad range of waste products, there are some pitfalls that can catch individuals or businesses out.
For example, products marked as ‘biodegradable’ or ‘compostable’ are not appropriate for recyclable waste and should either be included in non-recyclable waste or, if possible, a separate collection should be arranged for compostable and biodegradable items.
Under the Simpler Recycling Legislation, businesses may also compost their own food waste, rather than relying on waste collection. However, most businesses are likely to lack the space and the volume of food waste necessary to make this a viable option.
For a list of items that are not typically collected with recycling waste, you can consult the Government website or contact your waste collection service.
What Happens When An Organisation Fails To Comply With Legislation?
Failure to comply with Simpler Recycling rules is likely to have two negative outcomes:
First, your designated waste collection company is likely to refuse your waste collection if they determine that the waste has been contaminated or not sorted properly. Professional waste carriers require licencing in the UK, which means that most reputable waste businesses will choose not to risk fines or enforcement action.
Further to this, if an organisation does not comply with legislation, then they are likely to receive a compliance notice from the Environment Agency (EA).
Compliance notices are also likely to be given to anyone who is not separating waste in agreement with their waste collector. This normally means the individuals that produce the waste, i.e. the business, but can also be extended to landlords and facilities managers who present waste on behalf of the business.
How Can I Contact My Waste Collector About Simpler Recycling Legislation?
As this legislation was introduced in March 2025, your waste collector should already have communicated any changes that need to be made in order to continue collecting your rubbish, as waste collectors have a legal duty to make sure that recyclable materials (plastic, metal, glass, paper and card) and food waste are collected separately from non-recyclable waste.
If you have not been in touch with your waste collector, or your waste collector is hired by your landlord, it is still the business’s responsibility to ensure that it is complying with the legislation in place.
If you are aware that your business is not separating waste appropriately, the likely first step is to get in touch with your waste collection service to confirm that the waste is being separated appropriately. If not, your organisation must take steps to ensure that this sorting takes place, or risk facing consequences.
If you are aware that an organisation or business is not complying with the Simpler Recycling legislation, there is a specific area to report this on the Government website.
Discover Recyclable Packaging Material At Schott Packaging
At Schott Packaging, we pride ourselves on producing premium-quality packaging materials for a wide range of customers and industries.
If you are trying to reduce your non-recyclable waste, consider browsing our range of Paper Eco Mailers, Cardboard Boxes and Paper Void Fill options to find the perfect packaging or storage solution for your business, without increasing your environmental impact.If you are interested in custom-printed packaging or are looking to purchase packaging in bulk, please contact us, and a member of our team will be happy to provide you with a range of options to suit your needs.