Commercial Recycling
Recycling waste is vital to protect the environment, operate sustainably, and save money for your organisation. Businesses produce large volumes of rubbish, so recycling is particularly important to avoid waste going to landfill. We provide commercial recycling collections for UK businesses and promote a zero waste to landfill policy to turn your refuse into valuable resources.
Arrange commercial recycling collection wherever your business is in the UK, whatever type of recyclable waste you produce, and industry you operate in. Get free bins to store and separate recycling items – you only pay for the recycling waste collection. Contact us online or call 0800 211 8390 for a free quote for business recycling.
Get a free quote
Get a fast FREE quote for your waste recycling
- Free quote within 1 hr
- Any type of commercial waste
- FREE bins and delivery
- We cover all of the UK
Waste recycling
services
Our commercial recycling services can help you along every step of the recycling process. From storing your waste to recycling it so it’s reused in a sustainable way, our nationwide network means we can easily find a solution wherever you are in the UK.
We’ll provide free bins to safely store your recyclable rubbish on your premises. Then our recycling collection service can pick up and move your waste to a nearby recycling facility. Here we ensure everything possible is recycled thanks to our zero waste to landfill policy.
Use our commercial recycling services for recycling items of all types and materials from your business, including:
Commercial recycling
bins
There are various business recycling bins you can use to keep on top of your waste. It’s important that you sort the rubbish you create and store in separate commercial recycling bins to ensure as much as possible is recycled. This reduces the risk of contaminants and improves the chances of as much as possible being recycled.
We can provide business recycling bins for all types of recyclable rubbish and in a wide range of sizes to suit your organisation’s needs. From small wheelie bins for your glass waste to huge compactors that make your cardboard waste more manageable, there’s a solution for every business.
Explore the commercial recycling bins available to suit your storage and collection needs.
Commercial recycling
costs
The costs of waste recycling depend on the amount of recyclable materials you need collecting and how often. Sizes of any recycling bins you use, the type of waste, and your location in the UK also affect the price of collection, transportation to a nearby facility, and recycling.
To reduce the costs to recycle commercial waste, some small businesses may use large bins for storage and arrange collection on a weekly or fortnightly basis. Or if space is limited rely on smaller bins with more frequent collections. Large businesses with space for balers and compactors often use them as a cost-effective recycling option.
Recycling is better for the environment and can be cheaper as you avoid any landfill tax. You may also be eligible for recycling rebates. Our expert team can advise and help you develop a cost-effective business waste recycling plan – get in touch today.
Commercial waste
recycling regulations
As a business that needs commercial recycling, the main regulations you need to comply with are the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This imposes a duty of care on your company when it comes to disposing of your commercial waste – including that sent for recycling.
When it comes to waste recycling, under these regulations you must:
- Keep waste to a minimum by trying to prevent, reuse, recycle or recover waste (in that order – essentially follow the 5 Rs of recycling).
- Separate and store your waste recycling safely and securely.
- Fill in a waste transfer note for every collection of recycling that leaves your premises.
- Ensure the waste carriers you use are licensed.
- Prevent any waste carriers from disposing of your recycling waste illegally.
Alongside these regulations, the UK government has set several recycling targets for the coming years that apply to businesses. These include:
- By 2030, the preparing for re-use and recycling of municipal waste increases to a minimum of 60% by weight.
- 75% of packaging waste to be recycled each year by 2030.
- 85% paper/card, 81% glass, and 56% plastic packaging to be recycled by 2030.
- Cut how much waste goes to landfill to 10% by 2035.
- Reducing the usage of single use plastics and similar items.
Who uses our
recycling services?
Our recycling services are used by all sorts of organisations. We can help any business that has waste for recycling – whatever its type, amount, and wherever you are in the UK. From a start-up that needs to recycle packaging, plastic drinks bottles, and recyclable waste from the office kitchen bins, to takeaways that produce large amounts of plastic waste, our commercial recycling services offer solutions for all.
Certain industries and organisations produce more recyclable rubbish than others. Find a solution with our recycling services however much waste you want to get rid of in a green way. Some of the main businesses and industries where we help with waste management and recycling include:
Why should I use Business Waste
as my recycling company?
Waste recycling companies such as Business Waste help your organisation get rid of your rubbish in an environmentally friendly, safe, and legal way. We use advanced waste management technology to help you deal with all forms of waste. Businesses that exercise a zero waste to landfill policy and recycle have reported a significant increase in their reputation.
When you use commercial recycling companies such as Business Waste, you can expect:
- A dedicated team that ensures your waste recycling is compliant with all regulations and done in an effective and cost-effective way.
- Free recycling bins for your business to store all types of commercial waste.
- Collection on a daily, weekly, or fortnightly schedule to suit your commercial waste recycling needs.
- Help and advice on following the 5Rs and ensuring your company operates on a zero to landfill policy
- Free waste transfer notes with every collection for your peace of mind.
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Waste recycling
FAQs
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What is commercial recycling?
Commercial recycling is the process of turning trade and business waste into something new. The materials that make up the waste are processed so they can be used again and again. Sometimes commercial recycling is referred to as ‘closed-loop’ recycling, as the materials go full circle without causing any damage to the environment. When we recycle, we protect the planet by reducing:
- The need to source new materials.
- Your business’ carbon footprint.
- Our reliance on landfill sites and more dangerous forms of waste disposal.
Commercial recycling covers all the types of waste you can recycle at home and some more specialist kinds of waste. Your business can recycle the following materials and items:
- Paper – white and coloured paper, envelopes, booklets, receipts, flyers, magazines and newspapers
- Cardboard – packaging, boxes, juice cartons, and takeaway boxes
- Metal – steel, aluminium, brass, copper, silver, and gold
- Plastic – milk bottles, plastic bags, drinks bottles, butter containers, takeaway packaging, and cling film
- Food waste – from restaurants, kitchens, pubs and clubs
- WEEE waste – laptops, computers, phones, and other electronic devices
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How is commercial waste recycled?
The recycling process for commercial waste depends on the type of recyclable rubbish. There are many ways different products and materials are recycled – from glass recycling involving it being crushed, heated, and reformed, to paper recycling where it’s washed, mixed with new materials, and dried to form new paper.
As a business, the main thing that’s important is you sort and store your recyclable waste in separate bins, bags, and containers. Then arrange collection by a trusted licensed waste carrier to transport to a recycling facility – rather than it going to landfill – for relevant processing and recycling.
Even though it depends on the waste type, generally the recycling process follows these steps:
- Waste disposal – your business produces recyclable waste and stores it in appropriate bins and containers.
- Collection and transportation – a licensed waste carrier collects your commercial recycling bins and takes them to a nearby recycling facility.
- Sorting – the waste in your recycling bins is checked and sorted to remove any contaminants.
- Cleaning and treatment – depending on the waste type, it may be cleaned or undergo treatment to remove further contaminants.
- Recycling process – the waste goes through a recycling process based on its materials.
- Redistribution – recycled products or materials are then sent to warehouses, factories, retailers, and anywhere else for reuse.
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What are the 5 Rs of recycling?
The recycling process may sound straightforward – just put your recyclable waste in the right bins. However, there are more steps to it than you may realise, known as the 5 Rs of recycling. You should consider each of the 5 Rs before you throw a product away or send it for recycling.
- Refuse– The first step of the 5 Rs is simply no longer purchasing or using products that damage the environment. For example, if you work in the food service industry, you could refuse single-use plastics and opt for more environmentally friendly products instead. This decreases demand for no-recyclable products, allowing better alternatives to replace them.
- Reduce – As a business, it’s your responsibility to seek eco-friendly alternatives to products that damage the environment. However, when buying and using such products is unavoidable, try to reduce the amount you purchase and use. Only buy what you need and when you need it.
- Reuse – rather than throwing a product away after one use, you should aim to reuse as much as possible. It also encourages you to buy items you can use many times. For example, switch any single-use plastic cups in your office to reusable glasses.
- Repurpose – find alternative uses for a product rather than throwing it away. Too often, landfill sites are full of single-use items that could be used a few times before disposal. For example, you can clean and use old food containers for storage.
- Recycle – the final step of the 5 Rs process is to send relevant waste products to a recycling plant for a new lease of life. This should be the case for any paper, plastics, glass, metals, and other recyclable waste to turn into new materials and avoid them going to landfill.
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Why should my business recycle?
The benefits of recycling are clear – it has a positive impact on the planet, especially as it reduces the need for landfill sites. Landfill facilities worldwide are becoming increasingly scarce and often overflow with waste and debris. They may seem like a quick-fix solution for your waste disposal needs, but they cause long-term damage.
The UK alone produces around 200 million metric tonnes of waste in a year. A large proportion of this waste finds its way onto a landfill site. However, this waste will take hundreds (if not thousands) of years to decompose naturally. For example, a single plastic bag can take up to 1,000 years to decompose.
Furthermore, the process of decomposition releases a string of harmful gases into the air. These contribute to the destruction of the ozone layer, global warming, and can even cause harm to human life.
Easily recyclable items such as plastic often find their way into the ocean when not properly disposed of. Studies show that:
- There are 46,000 pieces of plastic in every square mile of the ocean
- Around 8 million pieces of plastic end up in the ocean every day
- 100,000 marine animals die each year as a result of plastic pollution
Therefore, we all carry a social responsibility to recycle wherever possible – within both our personal and professional lives. Thankfully, government initiatives are being put in place to make recycling not only more widespread but mandatory. While not all waste can be recycled, the UK has plenty of technology to safely and consciously dispose of our waste when necessary.
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What is a waste recycling company?
A waste recycling company is a business or organisation that can take care of all your commercial recycling needs. They will provide you with expert advice on how to store and organise your waste before collection, provide access to recycling bins, and ensure it’s safely collected, transported, and disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner.
For example, at Business Waste, we promote a zero waste to landfill policy and will always operate with this goal in mind.
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What are the UK’s recycling targets
The UK and EU governments have determined several targets for recycling in the coming years. This includes:
- A shared target for 65% of municipal waste to be recycled each year by 2030.
- A shared target of 75% of packaging waste to be recycled each year by 2030.
- Encourage people to move away from landfills by promoting other forms of waste disposal.
- Enforcing bans on landfilling separately collected waste.
- Reducing the usage of single used plastics and similar items.
- Raising awareness of the importance of recycling in everyday life.
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Do UK businesses legally have to recycle?
There’s no set law in place that means businesses that don’t recycle are acting illegally. However, under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, your business has a legal responsibility to ensure you produce, store, transport and dispose of all waste in ways that best protect the environment.
This includes having a legal and moral responsibility to do everything possible to prevent, reuse, recycle or recover waste (in this order). That means recycling should always be a priority when you create any type of waste where possible.
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Can companies be fined for not recycling?
Yes, businesses that fail to uphold their duty of care when it comes to waste management may face large fines and even prison sentences of up to five years. This includes everything from unsafe and improper storage of waste (such as recyclables), transportation by an unlicensed carrier, and inappropriate disposal.
If your business is found to dispose of recyclable waste in landfill for example, you could be fined as this isn’t taking steps to reuse, recycle, or recover the materials. Usually this will start with a warning, enforcement/prohibition notice, fixed penalty notice, and then a formal caution.
The Environment Agency found the average fine to be more than £7,000+. This can seriously damage small businesses and is an avoidable fine.
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Why should copper not be disposed of in landfill sites?
Waste metals such as copper should not go to landfill. This is because they can contaminate ground water and soil, negatively affecting the surrounding environment and microorganisms. It can slow down the decomposition of organic matter in landfill and animals may absorb copper concentrations through the water and soil that harm their health.
Landfill space is also filling up and sending copper to landfill can incur a landfill tax. Instead, you should recycle any copper so it can be reused and have a more positive environmental impact. Learn more about metal recycling
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How much does it cost per tonne for recycling of waste?
Recycling waste costs vary per tonne depending on the type of recyclable waste and where it’s being taken. To find an accurate price, contact our team. They can provide information about up-to-date costs for the recycling waste you need to get rid of per tonne.
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How much commercial waste is recycled?
According to government figures from 2020, 48.7% of waste was recycled or otherwise recovered. This fell just short of the UK government target of a 50% recycling rate, so there’s still work to be done.
Get a fast and free quote
Get a fast and free quote for your business waste recycling
- Free quote within 1 hr
- Any type of business waste
- FREE bins and delivery
- We cover all of the UK